Occupy Wall Street: Report Criticizes Police Response To Oakland Protests In 2010

April 30 (Reuters) - Oakland police used "an overwhelming military-type response" to disperse Occupy Oakland demonstrators and fired at a former Marine and Iraq war veteran who was critically injured in the clashes in October, according to a report issued on Monday.

The report by an outside monitor of the Oakland Police Department came one day before anti-Wall Street protesters plan nationwide rallies on May 1, with Occupy Oakland demonstrators vowing to take over San Francisco's iconic Golden Gate Bridge.

Oakland's police practices came under intense scrutiny last year when former Marine Scott Olsen was critically injured during a demonstration in October. Protesters said he was hit in the head by a tear gas canister.

The report concludes, for the first time from an official source, that police did fire at and hit Olsen that evening. An Oakland Police Department SWAT team member fired a beanbag round at Olsen, striking him in the head, according to the report.

"We have viewed many official and unofficial video clips of the Occupy Oakland-related incidents," the report said. "These recordings lead us to ask additional questions as the level of force that was used by OPD officers, and whether that use of force was in compliance with the Department's use of force policies."

The beanbag rounds fired that night leave a green residue, which was found on the hat Olsen was wearing that night, later retrieved by police, according to the report.

Olsen's case reinvigorated the Occupy movement against economic inequality, and the confrontations with police in subsequent protests turned Oakland into a focal point for the movement as demonstrators rallied against what they described as police brutality.

The Oakland Police Department has been subject to court-ordered external monitoring and review since the 2003 settlement of what was known as the Riders case, in which four officers were accused of planting evidence, fabricating police reports and using unlawful force, according to the Oakland police.

Monday's report was the latest in a series designed to monitor and enforce compliance with the court-ordered reforms, known as the Negotiated Settlement Agreement.

"We were, in some instances, satisfied with the performance of the Department; yet in others, we were thoroughly dismayed by what we observed," police monitor Robert Warshaw wrote in his quarterly report.

The police department announced last week that it was making significant changes to how it trains officers to control large crowds following criticism over its practices during Occupy Oakland protests that sometimes turned violent. It received more than 1,000 misconduct complaints during those protests.

"OPD has turned the corner," Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan said in a statement upon the report's release. "My vision is to make Oakland one of the safer major cities in California." (Editing by Edith Honan and Anthony Boadle)

 

Comments

[tj55555]

02:12 PM on 05/01/2012

If the Occupy movement had a lick of sense they would back and support Ron Paul and stop Obama's clone Romney from getting the GOP nomination. Paul wants to stop the Wall Street fraud, the looting of the nation, stop crony capitalism, end corporatism and put an end to the military industrial complex. Paul want to cut the military side of the budget and take care of those that are presently dependent on the system. If the Occupy movement had brains they would occupy the ballot for Ron Paul. If they did that thy would not need to protest.

[poppyCa]

11:07 AM on 05/01/2012

Go Oakland Go! I invested in zip ties, so GO, GO, GO!

[jimmytwigs]

06:12 AM on 05/01/2012

all police should have a camera and mic on them anytime they are on duty. If they dont turn it on , they don't get paid,lets see how they like the nanny state

[dalibor2003]

11:14 AM on 05/01/2012

I dont see whats that gona accomplish since they were given orders from above to do what they did...unl

[OC Surfer]

04:41 AM on 05/01/2012

Oakland: the only thing keeping it from turning into Detroit are all the super-rich liberals across the bay and in the hills. (The weather *is* fantastic everywhere just off the California part of the Pacific, and worth the welfare taxes and the rampant crime.)

[oldpol2]

04:16 AM on 05/01/2012

The militarization of our police departments across the country should scare the begeezees out of everyone. In some cases they have used crowd control tactics not even allowed in war zone occupations. Furthermore you have big businesses paying massive funds to the NYPD to guard the business. No conflict of interest there, right? People really need to wake up and discover we are in the throes of fascism. Do you ever wonder WHY everyone who disagrees with the status quo is called a commie? All these things should be considered in total.

[poppyCa]

11:14 AM on 05/01/2012

Why do you think the police are ramping up? All we get from occupy are loads of threats, we are going to do this and that. Go NYPD! zip tie them all, use appropriate force to keep New York city a place where people can live and not have a riot on ones doorstep.

[oldpol2]

09:04 PM on 05/01/2012

Until they come for you!