Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price held a news conference Monday and claimed that two Oakland police officers have been charged with driving while intoxicated while on duty, and “possibly” a third will be as well.
Price did not identify the officers by name and said she could not provide details about the allegations or cases.
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Price said she wrote a letter to Oakland Police Chief Floyd Mitchell and Acting Chief of Police James Beere, which she read at Monday’s news conference. However, Oakland police denied receiving such a letter Monday afternoon.
“Neither Chief Mitchell nor Assistant Chief Beere received the letter from the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office,” a department spokesperson said in an email. “The Oakland Police Department (OPD) was made aware of this letter by our media partners.”
In the letter Price read, she asks the chief to “develop clear policies to prevent this potentially dangerous, deadly behavior from endangering the residents of Alameda County.”
“It is critical that we hold police officers to the highest standards,” Price said. “These DUI-related arrests represent a substantial and sudden increase and represent an alarming trend within the Oakland Police Department.”
Price also joked about the department’s oversight of its officers.
“Based on the documented history of mishandling of disciplinary matters by the department’s leadership, the public has reason to be concerned about whether the department will handle these types of serious incidents leniently,” she said. “As you know, my office cannot act to appropriately hold officers accountable if the responsible agency does not conduct a prompt and thorough investigation into the officer’s conduct.”
On Monday, Oakland police said they were aware of the allegations against the officers and were cooperating with outside law enforcement agencies on each case.
“The affected employees were placed on administrative leave in June 2023 and October 2023 and the matters are under investigation,” a department spokesperson said. “This is an ongoing personnel matter. OPD cannot provide any further details at this time.”
