Crime

Judge Orders Police Reforms, Says Mayor Did Not Honor Her Word

Published

9 years ago

July 14, 2017

Following a hearing this week with Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and other top city officials, U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson issued a court order Wednesday requiring the City of Oakland to reform how it conducts investigations of police misconduct. The judge’s order came in response to the June 21 report of a court investigator that found the city had “severely mishandled” the investigation into allegations that Oakland Police Department had sexually exploited underage teenager Celeste Guap.

Attending the Monday court hearing were Mayor Schaaf, Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick, City Council members and police command stand.

“Defendants continue to say many of the right things,” wrote Judge Henderson in the court order. “However…good intentions are not enough. Now, more than ever, is the time for action and not just words.”

Some of the changes the judge is requiring:

1. OPD criminal investigators must inform the District Attorney whenever they have a reasonable suspicion that an officer committed a crime;
2. OPD´s special victims unit should lead investigations in to alleged police sex crimes, instead of homicide investigators;
3. Internal affairs must brief the mayor and the city administrator monthly on major police misconduct cases;
4. Internal affairs investigators should notify the Oakland City attorney´s Office early in police misconduct investigations.

The city is required to file a report to the court by Sept. 15 on the implementation of the reforms.

“For any changes not yet fully implemented, the city shall include a timeline for implementation, as well as a list of responsible person who may, if warranted, be subject to contempt proceedings or other sanctions for any missed deadlines,” the court order said.
A follow up hearing will be held on Oct. 2.

For the past 14 years, Judge Henderson has been overseeing police reforms required as part of the Negotiated Settlement Agreement, which settled the lawsuit against the city in the infamous Riders Case, in which officers were alleged to have kidnapped, planted evidence, and beat citizens. After Judge Henderson retires on Aug. 11, the case will be handled by Judge William H. Orrick III.

“When the police sexual misconduct issue first was revealed, Mayor Schaaf tried to divert the public’s attention by announcing her concern over the texting of racial images by some Black officers. She emphasized the race of Black officers’ inappropriately texting rather than pointing out the race of the non-Black officers involved in teenage sextings,” said Post publisher Paul Cobb after Post staff interviewed her.

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AG Bonta Announces Action on Cryptocurrency, Sextortion Fraud – Increasingly Targeting Gen-Z

California Attorney General Rob Bonta is warning residents about a surge in cryptocurrency fraud and online sextortion schemes that increasingly target Gen Z through social media platforms. With internet-based scams costing Americans nearly $21 billion in 2023, Bonta highlighted how artificial intelligence and deepfakes allow criminals to impersonate loved ones and promote fraudulent investment groups. The Attorney General’s Office has already shut down over 100 fraudulent websites and is now utilizing new legislative tools to recover assets for victims. Read more.

Published

2 weeks ago

November 3, 2026

Post News Group

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned residents about rising cryptocurrency fraud and online sextortion scams, urging Californians to recognize warning signs and protect themselves as scammers increasingly target younger people through social media.

Speaking at a news conference on Oct. 19, Bonta said Americans lost $20.9 billion to internet-based scams in 2025, including $11.4 billion to cryptocurrency scams. He said artificial intelligence, deepfakes, and malicious smart contracts have made fraud easier to carry out and more difficult to detect and prevent.

While older Californians remain targets, Bonta said his office has seen a sharp rise in reports of Gen Z consumers being targeted on platforms such as Twitch, TikTok, and Instagram.

One growing scheme involves so-called rug-pull scams, in which fraudsters promote low-priced stocks or volatile cryptocurrencies through online investment groups and streaming communities. After generating interest and driving up prices, scammers sell their holdings, causing values to collapse and leaving investors with losses.

Bonta also warned about sextortion, in which scammers trick or coerce victims into sharing explicit images before threatening to distribute them to friends and family unless they pay. He advised victims not to give in to demands, saying scammers often do not release the images when victims refuse to pay. Instead, he recommended ignoring and blocking the perpetrators.

Another scheme, known as recovery fraud, targets people who have already lost money to cryptocurrency scams. Fraudsters impersonate blockchain recovery specialists or law enforcement officials and demand additional payments while promising to recover stolen assets.

Bonta urged Californians to be skeptical of promises of large returns on small investments, fake cryptocurrencies resembling established ones, and celebrity endorsements that may have been generated using artificial intelligence. He also warned that scammers can use AI to impersonate loved ones through manipulated video and audio.

“Never use a crypto ATM,” Bonta said, emphasizing that transactions can be difficult to trace and reverse and that the machines lack adequate consumer protections.

His office has shut down more than 100 fraudulent websites over the past two years that collectively scammed victims out of at least $8.3 million, he said.

Bonta also highlighted Senate Bill 1208, which he said was recently signed into law. The measure allows law enforcement to petition a court to return seized cryptocurrency to victims, including when alleged perpetrators are outside U.S. jurisdiction.

Residents who have fallen victim to scams can report them to the California Department of Justice at oag.ca.gov/report.

Bonta also urged victims not to feel embarrassed, stressing that scammers are responsible for the harm they cause.