|
|
In our monthly newsletter, we provide important information about the work of the Oakland City Attorney's Office, plus updates on legal issues and matters that impact Oakland residents and businesses.
This newsletter covers February and some activities in March, including: City Attorney's Annual Report details highlights of the Fiscal Year (July through June) 2013-14 year; City Attorney enters into settlement agreements to clean up problem properties; Oakland launches reward program for reporting illegal dumping; and as always, updates on major cases and legal matters.
I look forward to your questions and comments about the work we are doing on behalf of the people of Oakland.
Barbara J. Parker
Oakland City Attorney
|
|
|
Report details financial results, litigation trends and initiatives for Fiscal Year ("FY") 2013-14, including a 35% reduction in outside counsel costs
The City Attorney's Office plays an integral and often behind the scenes role in city government. Every year since 2001, we have published an Annual Report to show residents, businesses and taxpayers the services we provide on their behalf.
This report includes litigation trends, financial results and special initiatives for the Fiscal Year 2013-14, and provides details on the work of each unit in the City Attorney's Office.
Read the Full Report
Some highlights for FY 2013-14 include:
- The cost of outside counsel dropped by $2.39 million in this fiscal year, a decrease of more than 35%. The total cost of outside counsel this year was $4.47 million compared to $6.86 million in FY 2012-13. Like other cities, Oakland routinely hires outside counsel. Over the last decade, however, the cost of outside counsel increased by millions of dollars due to budget cuts that eliminated more than one-third of our staff (19 attorneys and 14 support staff were laid off). The Council's FY 2013-14 budget restored staff to the City Attorney's Office for the first time in more than a decade. The result was a significant savings on outside counsel bills. In fact, the savings was almost four times the total annual cost of the three new in-house positions.
- The City Attorney's Office won a record $15.1 million judgment against a fraudulent immigration consulting business that swindled Oakland families seeking legal residency in the U.S. It was the largest judgment the City has ever secured in litigation, and likely the largest judgment to date under California's Immigration Consultants Act.
- With the help of concerned Oakland citizens, the City Attorney's Office, the Public Works Agency and City Administrator's Office launched a crack down on illegal dumping.
|
|
Neighborhood Law Corps Secures Settlements to Clean Up Problem Properties
 I am pleased to report that my Office recently secured settlements that will force landlords to address unsafe and inhumane conditions at two rental properties in west and east Oakland.
Our Neighborhood Law Corps ("NLC") unit prosecuted the litigation. The NLC (see photo) includes newly minted lawyers who join our Office for a two-year period at the salary of a first year Oakland public school teacher.
In August of last year, the NLC filed a public nuisance lawsuit against the Beverly Hills-based owners of the West Grand Hotel, a single room occupancy rental property notorious for drug sales and appalling living conditions. Later that same month, the NLC filed a separate lawsuit against the Walnut Creek-based owners of the Hillside Apartments, a large apartment complex in East Oakland also known for appalling living conditions and rampant crime. The Oakland Police Department described Hillside as a base of operations for a violent gang known for robberies, shootings and other crimes in East Oakland.
Both lawsuits charged the owners with failing to maintain basic standards of habitability and security at their properties as required by law.
In February, we secured settlements in both cases that will improve conditions for tenants and neighbors of the properties. The settlements require that the owners clean up the properties, hire professional management and pay the City: $40,000 in the Hillside case and $100,000 in the West Grand case.
For years, the West Grand Hotel at 641 West Grand Avenue operated as a nuisance to the neighborhood and a danger to the dozens of people who live there. The property has long been a center of drug activity, including sales, storage and distribution of cocaine and heroin.
City inspectors also repeatedly documented dangerous building and fire code violations, including a complete lack of fire extinguishers or alarms, exposed and unsafe wiring, broken windows, infestations of mold and cockroaches, overflowing dumpsters, nonworking toilets and showers, cooking appliances used in the hallways and conditions unfit for human habitation.
As part of the settlement, the court appointed a receiver with authority over the property to oversee compliance, including completing necessary repairs and preventing drug sales. Additionally, the settlement requires that the owners pay for a professional property manager for the next five years.
Safety and blight problems also have plagued the Hillside Apartments, located at the end of Hillside Street where it dead-ends into the back fence of Castlemont High School.
According to police, stolen vehicles are often stripped, abandoned and sometimes burned in the Hillside parking lot. Police said robbery suspects sometimes flee into the complex, where they can duck into apartments and hide from police, and gang members openly carry firearms and intimidate tenants on the property. There was at least one shooting on or near the property every month during the four months immediately preceding the filing of the lawsuit in August.
The Hillside settlement also requires that the owners hire a local professional property manager and licensed security guards to patrol the complex. The owners must personally conduct regular inspections with a neutral monitor overseeing compliance. In addition the settlement requires that the owners install security gates and 54 high definition security cameras, and maintain the property free of blight and building code violations. The City has the right to approve any buyers of the Hillside property and the settlement will bind any future owners.
More info
|
Oakland Launches Reward Program for Reporting Illegal Dumping
Illegal dumping enforcement continues to be a top priority for my Office. The City Attorney's Neighborhood Law Corps is using photos and other evidence from the public to track down illegal dumpers, and the City is issuing major fines. Some of the cases are forwarded to the District Attorney's Office to consider criminal charges. In late 2013, I co-sponsored an ordinance with City Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney to address illegal dumping -- one of the worst sources of civic blight in the city. After the City Council unanimously passed the ordinance, we partnered with the Public Works Agency and the City Administrator's Office to enforce this new law and hold violators accountable. Results so far: - Total number of citations issued: 126
- Number of warning letters issued: 201
- Total amount collected in fines: $35,527
- Amount expected via pending settlements: $4,051
On Feb. 5, I attended a press conference with Mayor Libby Schaaf, City Councilmembers and other officials to announce the launch of a reward program for reporting illegal dumping. Witnesses who report illegal dumping can receive up to half of all penalties collected in successful enforcement actions based on the witness's reports. As Oaklanders know, illegal dumping is one of the worst sources of civic blight in our city. It's not only an eyesore, it also contributes to a perception of our city and an environment that can encourage more serious crime and violence. Making Oakland a cleaner city will make it a safer city. Under our enforcement program, illegal dumpers can be fined up to $1,000 a day for every day their trash remains on our streets. We want to send a message that there are consequences for committing this crime in Oakland. Not only is it legally and morally the right thing to do, but it is much cheaper and easier to haul your trash to the dump! Witnesses can report illegal dumping to Public Works at:
Phone: (510) 615-5566 (Monday thru Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
Email: opwcallcenter@oaklandnet.com
Mobile App: http://www.seeclickfix.com/oakland
Online: Report a Problem
If you see illegal dumping in progress, photos of license plate numbers of vehicles used to commit this crime will help us find the perpetrators. If a photo is not available, write down the license plate number. At all times avoid confrontation or dangerous situations when documenting illegal dumping incidents. |
|
Updates on Major Cases & Matters
Texas v. U.S. Case No. 1:14-cv-254, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
The City of Oakland has joined a coalition of more than 30 cities across the country to file an amicus brief in the case Texas v. United States supporting President Barack Obama's recent executive actions on immigration reform. The "friend of the court" brief supports the constitutionality of the President's executive actions, which offer protection from deportation and work permits to millions of immigrants who have been living in the U.S. for at least five years, have no criminal records and have a child who is a citizen or permanent resident. Last month, Texas and other states led by Republican governors filed a lawsuit challenging the reform efforts, arguing that the President has a constitutional duty to enforce existing immigration laws. The brief argues that the President's action will fuel economic growth in cities across the country, will increase public safety by encouraging immigrant residents to trust and cooperate with law enforcement, and will facilitate the full integration of immigrant families into the communities where they live, work and go to school.
Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. The Inclusive Communities Project U.S. Supreme Court Amicus Brief
Oakland also recently signed another amicus brief involving a Texas case with national ramifications. In this case, civil rights groups, states and cities across the country are arguing that the 1968 Fair Housing Act, which outlawed racial discrimination in housing decisions, should be interpreted to prohibit not only intentional discrimination, but also "race-neutral" policies that result in harm and discrimination against minorities. Oakland, San Francisco and other cities signed the brief arguing that "disparate impact" claims play an important role in combating discriminatory zoning laws, banking practices and other policies.
Shields v. Ableski Alameda County Superior Court Case No. RG14734700
The Court recently sustained the City's and OPD officers' demurrer without leave to amend and dismissed the City and officers from this case involving a serious car wreck. In August 2013, a citizen alerted officers in the Recruiting and Internal Affairs Offices that something was off about a man sitting in an idling truck on 16th Street near the Frank H. Ogawa cul-de-sac. The officers went to the truck and persuaded the man to park in the cul-de-sac, but he would not shut off the engine, open the door or roll down the window. The officers assessed that the man was drunk or having a medical emergency. Though the officers could not have known at the time, the man was in a diabetic shock. Dressed in plain clothes, the officers called for uniformed officers and an ambulance. The man began reversing and so the OPD officers flagged down a CHP officer who happened to be nearby and asked to use his baton. The CHP officer ran to the truck and smashed the window. The man sped off and rear ended a SUV, severely injuring the SUV's driver. The SUV driver sued both the motorist who hit her and the City of Oakland. Agreeing that the City had no liability for her injuries, the Court sustained our demurrer without leave to amend and dismissed the City and OPD officers from the case.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
