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OAKLAND — Social rights activists and attorneys announced a federal civil rights lawsuit Thursday, calling on the city to ban police use of tear gas, rubber bullets and flash bangs on protesters in Oakland.
The lawsuit, filed by civil rights attorneys Dan Siegel and Walter Riley as part of the National Lawyers Guild, seeks to not only ban the use of fear gas, flash-bang grenades, wooden and rubber bullets and other “non-lethal” weapons, but also calls upon the city to defund police.
“We are not accepting the narrative of the Oakland Police Department and in clear terms, the narrative of the mayor that they’re (protesters) outsiders trying to undermine our political will,” Riley said.
The lawsuit focuses on protests that occurred in the city May 29 and June 3, and in particular, police use-of-force that targeted students who marched into downtown last week.
The lawsuit also seeks damages for people injured by police during the May 29 and June 3 protests.
Akil Riley, one of the black youth organizers of the demonstration, spoke at a press conference about the physical and emotional injuries he suffered from the police’s reactions to their protest. He said he’s felt a figurative knee on his back after the death of George Floyd, who died last month after a white police officer put his knee on his neck for nearly 9 minutes.
“It’s emotional to feel that knee on my back,” Akil said. He said he also feels a “deep depression.” Akil was hit with a flash-bang by police during the demonstration.
Attorney Riley said they want changes within the police department.
“Despite almost 20 years of federal court oversight and several settlement agreements, the Oakland police continue to violate the rights of peaceful protesters, particularly African Americans and other people of color,” Riley said.
“We are seeking relief in the courts, but we demand that the mayor and City Council finally take the steps necessary to create a police department whose leaders and officers are held strictly accountable for violations of people’s rights,” he said.
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf released a statement Thursday in response, saying that use of chemical agents is “extremely disturbing and unfortunate.”
“We support continued exploration of other, less harmful means to ensure safety for all involved. While police records reflect that recent uses were to avert an imminent threat of harm, as our policies require, we will thoroughly investigate these incidents, as well as every individual complaint involving any officer misconduct. Any Oakland officers or their supervisors who violated these strict policies will be held accountable and disciplined accordingly,” Schaaf said.
Thousands of protesters marched to Schaaf’s home Wednesday night, calling for her to defund the city’s police department. In a statement in her newsletter Thursday morning, Schaaf said she and Oakland Chief Susan Manheimer “want to move toward a society where police are not needed.”
“We want a society where everyone feels safe without state intervention or armed response. We agree that investments in education, health, housing security and economic well-being are the most powerful ways to advance safety in Oakland,” Schaaf said.
The mayor also said the city will continue to invest in “non-law enforcement responses to community safety needs.”
Cat Brooks, of the Anti-Police Terror Project, is also named as a plaintiff in the federal civil rights lawsuit and called the mayor’s response “tone-deaf.”
“There is something wrong, and it’s ingrained in the very foundation and core of that department,” Brooks said of the police.
In an open letter to the Oakland community, Chief Manheimer said police will stop using carotid restraint holds. Both the chief and mayor said they will commit to the “8 Can’t Wait” campaign use of force policy changes, six of which are in use in the city and they are “finalizing the remaining two.” The campaign calls on police agencies throughout the country to bring immediate change to policies and use of force.
