Oakland leaders call for crime crackdown Following recent slayings of an 8-year-old and a pet sitter, 2 council members say more must be done to stop bloodshed

The Rev. Greggory Brown, Barbara Taylor and Oakland Councilwoman Libby Schaaf comfort each other at a gathering to speak out against violence. The Rev. Greggory Brown, Barbara Taylor and Oakland Councilwoman Libby Schaaf comfort each other at a gathering to speak out against violence. Photo: Lacy Atkins, The Chronicle Photo: Lacy Atkins, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 7 Caption Close Oakland leaders call for crime crackdown 1 / 7 Back to Gallery

The recent shooting deaths of an 8-year-old girl and a 66-year-old pet sitter in Oakland are "heartbreaking losses" that should be the impetus for city leaders and the citizenry to redouble their efforts to combat crime, two City Council members and community leaders said Friday.

Standing on the block where well-known dog walker Judy Salamon was shot and killed Wednesday in the city's Fairfax neighborhood, council members Noel Gallo and Libby Schaaf said that the latest killings were especially disturbing and that more needs to be done to stem the bloodshed.

"Oaklanders cannot live like this. They cannot live with bullets flying into the homes and cars of our innocent residents," said Schaaf, who represents residents of Fairfax and Maxwell Park, the neighborhood where Salamon lived and where she was killed, just blocks from her home. "We have got to do more. We have got to put our money where our mouths are and gather the resources to put the investment that this city needs into public safety."

Schaaf said the slayings of Salamon on Fern Street and of 8-year-old Alaysha Carradine during a sleepover in the city's Dimond neighborhood on July 17 were "heartbreaking losses" that are proof that "we need to do everything in our power to raise children who are not capable of these acts, to raise neighbors who are not capable of being silenced in the face of these atrocities."

Schaaf said, "Enough is enough. Oakland is not going to live like this anymore. We deserve a safe city. We demand a safe city."

Gallo, who is chair of the city's public safety committee, agreed, saying, "The bottom line is for me, we have to take responsibility in Oakland and quit making excuses."

Gallo said citizens needed to help police by calling in tips about everything from illegal dumping to violent crime instead of concealing themselves behind security systems. "We can no longer hide behind those bars and windows," he said. "We have to take action."

Jose Dorado, chair of the Maxwell Park neighborhood council, urged residents to "step up, on a block by block basis, street by street, neighbor by neighbor. We have to step up, and this is the result of our not being organized at a citywide level, at every level. There are no shortcuts."

Dorado said each time someone is killed, there's a "double tragedy," with extended families of the victim and killer grieving over what happened.

Preston Turner, a resident who is active in local crime-prevention efforts, urged anyone with information about recent killings to call police. "We're tired of being tired," Turner said. "It's time for us to take our streets back."

Turner blasted the fact that the understaffed Oakland police have been diverted to handle protests downtown, siphoning away patrols of neighborhoods where innocent people have been killed.

"We're getting tired of this," Turner said. "If Occupy wanted to help Oakland, they should be working with OPD to help solve some of these crimes. They should be helping to prevent some of these crimes."

Salamon's slaying brings to 56 the number of people killed in Oakland so far this year, compared with 64 at the same time in 2012. Last year, all types of violent crime - homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assaults - increased in the city, as did property crime such as burglaries and thefts, according to FBI data. The department has 630 officers, down from 837 in December 2008.

At a candlelight vigil Thursday night outside Salamon's home, her sister Agi Gyurik broke down. "I loved her very much, and I'm devastated by this stupid waste of a life," Gyurik said.

She described Salamon as a gifted dancer and pianist who loved opera. Their mother died when Salamon was 17, Gyurik said.