Oakland

Scandals Prompt Oakland to Delay Police Academy

The Oakland City Council voted late Tuesday to delay the next police academy until a review of the department's recruiting and hiring process can be done.

Multiple scandals involving Oakland police are now affecting how the department recruits and trains new officers.

The Oakland City Council voted late Tuesday to delay the next police academy until a review of the department's recruiting and hiring process can be done. The scandal involving a teenage girl who says she had sex with more than a dozen Oakland officers, some while she was underage, has brought new attention to just how big an issue sex trafficking is in Oakland.

"Until we start to care about seeing that young lady, not the prostitute on the side of the road, nothing is going to change," said Vanessa Russell with Survivor's Advocate/Love Never Fails.

The police department insists it is working to ensure officers understand the gravity of all the allegations and also said Acting Assistant Chief David Downing is on top of it.

Downing has his hands full as he focuses on stabilizing the embattled police department.

"He is committed and he is determined to move this department forward, and holding everyone here accountable for everything we do," Oakland Police Department spokesperson Johnna Watson said.

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