SAFE officers (L-R) Chris Moore, Carl Chan, and Brenda Grisham surrounded by family members of violent crime victims.

Emeryville Among 14 Police Unions to Endorse Recall of DA Price

October 11, 2024
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3 mins read

A press conference was held at the Besler Building office of Public Relations professional Sam Singer last Saturday. Singer represents many local police unions and has a long list of corporate clients.

The press conference was called to announce that all 14 police unions have come together to announce their support for the recall efforts of embattled District Attorney Pamela Price.

These 14 unions represent the police forces of all 13 cities in Alameda County as well as the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association of Alameda County making the endorsement unanimous.

The organization SAFE (Safe Alameda For Everyone), was formed last year and successfully gathered enough voter signatures to place the recall of Price on November’s ballot.

Singer alongside officers of SAFE holding a check from the San Leandro Police Officers’ Association to support Price’s recall effort.

Price has not exactly endeared herself to local police agencies as she has dedicated more staff resources to investigating and charging officers in alleged misconduct cases and reopened cases previously resolved by her predecessor.

Police agencies aren’t the only one’s endorsing Price’s recall. Last week Congressman Eric Swalwell endorsed her recall as well. Swalwell, a former prosecutor in Alameda County and strong advocate of gun control measures, called Price “a disaster for Public Safety” and likened her approach with those charged with crimes as ‘catch and release.’

The Alameda County Prosecutors’ Union endorsed Price’s recall back in June.

Families of victims were also present at the event including those of brothers Angel & Jazy Sotelo Garcia who were both killed in 2022 at a house party just across the Emeryville border.

The then teen charged with their deaths and the shooting of two others would be eligible to be released from custody at age 25 based on the deal Price’s office struck.

Family members’ efforts to have the case transferred to adult court have thus far been denied.

One of the central figures of the recall effort is Brenda Grisham, a victim’s rights advocate who lost her son to Oakland’s violence in 2010.

Grisham spoke passionately about the need to recall Price saying “Fixing the system is one thing, but destroying the system is another.”

“Fixing the system is one thing, but destroying the system is another.”

SAFE Officer Brenda Grisham

Grisham also addressed criticisms that the group was targeting Price because she was the first Black D.A. elected in Alameda County. “The basis of her getting into office wasn’t based on her record – she was a civil rights attorney – it was mainly based on the fact that she is African-American, and so am I.”

SAFE is also represented by former County Supervisor candidate Chris Moore and Oakland Chinatown district leader Carl Chan.

Critics and Whistleblowers of Price have repeatedly pointed to disarray in the District Attorney’s office under Price’s leadership. The most recent missteps by Price include missed deadlines leading to the dismissal of more than a thousand misdemeanor cases and the recent dismissal of manslaughter charges against two Alameda Officers after her office failed to file the proper paperwork in time.

Supporters of Price and defenders of her recall efforts have argued that many of the issues with her office were inherited and that systemic changes require time to fix.

East Bay Progressive stalwart Barbara Lee recently came out in opposition of the recall of Price and Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao.

The Emeryville Police Officers’ Association is generally inactive in political matters. They briefly publicly surfaced in 2016 to endorse candidates in the city council race and in 2018 to issue a public statement addressing perceived tensions with council after a high profile shooting in the city.

We’ve reached out to EPOA representative Lance Goodfellow asking if the EPOA will be making any monetary contributions to the recall effort.

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Rob Arias

is a third generation Californian and East Bay native who lived in Emeryville from 2003 to 2021. Rob founded The E'ville Eye in 2011 after being robbed at gunpoint and lamenting the lack of local news coverage. Rob's "day job" is as a creative professional.

1 Comment

  1. Price is a straight up gangster and it’s troubling to see so many members of her party defend her tactics. Clearly, they are gangsters too! Vote them all out!!!

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