Following the mass arrests of current and former East Bay police officers, there are growing questions about what's next for an understaffed police department and public safety in Antioch.
Sherille Cobbs said Thursday's arrests of 10 current and former Antioch and Pittsburg police officers is precisely what she’s been praying for.
Her son, Trent Allen, who is on trial for murder, was the target of some of the officers charged.
"He kicked my son in the head, shot him with a 40, took pictures of my son while he was in the hospital," Cobbs said. "They sent text messages to each other bragging about it."
Antioch city leaders on Friday were meeting behind closed doors trying to decide next steps, including possibly terminating the officers who have been implicated.
"If the city has made the decision to terminate officers involved in any type of corruption, then I would certainly support that," said Mike Barbanica, an Antioch councilmember and retired Pittsburg police officer.
Barbanica is not involved in the discussions, but he said he's concerned about current police staffing levels in light of the scandal and the impact on public safety.
The police department is holding a hiring workshop this weekend, but Barbanica said more needs to be done.
"By the time you start looking at an applicant and getting them on the street working, it’s an extended period of time, and we don’t have time," he said. "It’s my belief that we need to bring in outside agencies to assist and backfill our officers."
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Meanwhile, Cobbs said she hopes her son’s case is dismissed, and she wants the officers to be held fully accountable. She said the city of Antioch has a lot to do to repair the damage.
"I wish you guys would continue to get all these bad seeds out of here, all of them take accountability to what they did because they need to be fired," she said. "No pensions. They need to do jail time because they committed a crime."
