Last day for OPD chief, roughly 100 officers on extended leave

OAKLAND, Calif. - A new report is raising questions about the Oakland Police Department’s finances as city leaders push to hire more officers despite a budget shortfall.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland hopes to add as many as 200 police officers. But the city lacks the funding to do so, in part because the department is paying millions of dollars in salaries to roughly 100 officers who are on extended leave.

Some of those officers are out for medical reasons, while others are sidelined due to ongoing investigations into their conduct, including allegations of excessive force, the report said.

Meanwhile, Friday marks the final day on the job for Oakland Police Chief Floyd Mitchell, who announced in October that he would be stepping down.

Assistant Chief James Beere will take over as interim chief while the city continues its search for a permanent replacement.

Separately, Oakland police have declined to release body camera footage from the day former NFL running back Doug Martin died in police custody, despite multiple public records requests, according to the Bay Area News Group.

The department said the incident did not meet the legal threshold that requires mandatory public release of the footage.

Martin, 36, a former Oakland Raiders running back, died Oct. 18 after allegedly breaking into a neighbor’s home while experiencing a medical emergency. Sources told KTVU that Martin became unresponsive in the back of a police car and was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Family members have said Martin had been struggling with mental health issues.