An Annotated Twitter Essay by OaklandElle

“Let me break it down for people who don’t live in Oakland and don’t see the day-to-day effects of OPD on our community.

“To start with, OPD starting salary is ~$74k/year, not including OT, which is more than even city council members make. (More on them later)

“Now, UNLIKE City Council members, OPD officers are not required to live in Oakland. What that means is their salaries LEAVE our community.

“ie: because ((the vast majority of)) OPD does not live in our city, their salaries, which are paid by our taxes, do not get recycled back into the community.

“Not only that, but because OPD does not live in this community, they neither understand it, nor are they accountable to it.

“Because of the lack of understanding and accountability, OPD officers frequently act completely inappropriately.

Oakland Police Officer Hector Jimenez shot 27-year-old Jody Woodfox in the back on July 25, 2008…

Click here for the complete essay.