EMERYVILLE, Calif. — Two boys, ages 14 and 16, were arrested Friday night after a woman trying to get her stolen phone back was attacked and an off-duty California Highway Patrol officer who came to her aid was choked unconscious, police said Monday.
The violent attacks happened about 8 p.m. Friday at the Bay Street Mall.
Police said a 24-year-old woman who had her cell phone stolen earlier confronted a group of juveniles she believed were responsible.
Police said there were about eight in the group and that they became aggressive toward the woman and began pushing her.
Police said an off-duty CHP officer saw the woman being attacked and tried to intervene. The group of juveniles then became aggressive with him and began assaulting him with their fists and feet, police said.
The officer was struck multiple times and was choked unconscious, police said. He was able to regain consciousness and pepper-sprayed a juvenile who was continuing to attack him.
Video: Off-duty Calif. officer attacked while assisting robbery victim
I can’t blame the cop for getting in the melee and receiving injuries: He is a cop and felt his duty calling. But for us, specially those living in places like Oakland where the packs of predators roam free with the unspoken blessing of the mayor, the only thing we can do is avoid where they gather. And if we arrive to a location and suddenly see the “yutes” congregated. we are better off going somewhere else.
I really do not see a way to survive something like this unscathed, physically, legally and any other way by using deadly force.
When the cops are helpless, expect a rise in vigilantism to soon follow.
Is it normal in CA for off-duty cops to be unarmed?
Bay Street Mall in Emeryville is quite a POSH section of town — it has a bunch of nice stores and a cineplex there. I’ve been there quite a few times. Of course, just because it’s posh doesn’t mean hooligans can’t visit it and wreck havoc.
I really don’t want to point this out, but I think it needs to be said. The young woman whose phone was stolen looks like she’s Asian — though yes it is rather hard to see from the street cam. I mention her race only because in the Bay Area, there are quite a lot of Asians, and they are targeted by hooligans (of any race) because they’re perceived to have nice phones, clothes, and cash. There already is a huge problem of Asians being targeted on the Bay Area subway transit system (called BART), as well as generally targeted for all other sorts of crimes.
However, even if she weren’t Asian, she looks to be about 4 ft 8, very short, and obviously not in the same physical class as the hooligans. While it’s nice she had the balls to confront these teens, I think she should have done it in different circumstances, out of her own safety. If the undercover cops weren’t there, who knows if she would be the one who got choked. But you know, she might have contacted the police first, or came with a much larger group of people to outnumber the hooligans, though granted I don’t know if the results would have been different.
To answer the question about off-duty cops carrying, no state-wide law prevents CA cops from carrying, but it really depends on each police precinct’s policies. I don’t know what Oakland PD’s internal policy is, but I’m pretty sure any police officer, if the policy allows, would have no trouble getting a carry permit vs a regular CA pleb.
This guy was CHP, not Oakland PD.
Raconteur Report. “Tomorrow”. Posted 15 Feb 2017