Overview
- Chief Floyd Mitchell has expanded the traffic unit and says a real-time information center will launch next week to share timely crime trends with residents.
- He cites five traffic deaths so far this year after seven last year and has told patrol officers to step up stops for dangerous driving.
- His plan targets property crime and organized retail theft and includes moving more officers into traffic enforcement and a regional response to homelessness in a city that estimates about 800 people are unhoused.
- He is meeting with command staff, city council members, and residents at town halls as he shapes the plan, and locals report car break-ins, shoplifting, and reckless driving at busy shopping areas.
- Mitchell previously led Oakland’s police department until December 2025, has not explained his resignation, and says crime there fell by well over 25% during his tenure.