Oakland police chief Anthony Batts is pressuring the city to funnel more resources into the dwindling department, following Monday's shooting death of 3-year-old Carlos Nava.

At a news conference Thursday announcing the arrest of alleged shooter Lawrence Denard, Batts expressed frustration with city leaders for not prioritizing law enforcement. He made references to the city's opposition to gang injunctions and curfews for teens.

 

“Monday, August 8 at 1:12 p.m. should be the rallying cry for this city to turn itself around,” Batts said at the news conference.

 

“Enough with excuses, enough with not doing the right thing, enough with not addressing injunctions, not wanting to do curfews, enough with not taking hard stances,” he said. “Because enough life has been lost.”

 

Batts called the news conference to announce Denard's arrest. The 26-year-old convicted felon, who has a history of weapons-related offenses including a felony grand theft conviction in Alameda County in 2004, was charged with murder, two counts of attempted murder and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon. A witness identified Denard as the shooter, according to court documents.

 

According to the documents, police interviewed one of the victims at the hospital who identified another suspect as the driver. That suspect is also expected to be charged with murder. If the suspects are convicted, the charges could mean more than 100 years in state prison, District Attorney Nancy O'Malley said. Police arrested Denard at his home in Pittsburg on Tuesday and confiscated several weapons.

 

Nava's shooting –- the youngest gun-related homicide victim in the city's recent history -- stirred outrage among residents of Oakland, prompting police and city leaders to take quick action.

 

Batts approved overtime for day patrol officers to flood the area and help with surveillance and tracking down leads. He said some officers worked more than 72 hours straight to crack the case. Police arrested and detained numerous gang members during the hunt for information.

 

Batts said the case showed what the department was capable of given the right amount of resources.

As a result of the police saturation, only one shooting occurred within a 72-hour period, Batts said, versus the three the department usually sees.

 

“That's because we had police officers on the street, which tells you if we had the right resources, this city could be as safe as any other city,” Batts said. “Maybe the loss of young Carlos will wake people up.”

 

He did not provide specifics on deployment, but said that other agencies, including the California Highway Patrol, the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, Stockton and Pittsburg police, helped in the investigation.

 

Spokeswoman Holly Joshi said she did not know the cost of the extra work, nor how many overtime hours officers had worked.

 

Police declined to provide more specifics on the investigation, including what led investigators to Denard. Lt. Brian Medeiros said investigators were still looking for an additional suspect. Police have obtained a warrant for his arrest.

 

“We cannot speak on him. We have a couple more loops to close on this that we are actively pursuing,” Medeiros said.