Noah Berger for The Bay Citizen

Oakland police officer N. Miller cordons off the scene of a double homicide on March 22, 2011

Oakland's police department, which is struggling to deal with a seemingly endless battle with Occupy protesters, an ever-shrinking police force and new restrictions imposed by a federal judge, now faces another challenge: a surge in gun violence.

Between Thursday and very early Monday morning, the city saw four homicides and at least 16 nonfatal shootings, more than twice the number of shootings in an average week. Much of the violence was concentrated in East Oakland, which saw 23 shootings and three murders over the past week, police said. 

The rise in violence comes as the department faces the impending possibility of a federal takeover — the result of several missed deadlines in a nine-year, court-mandated reform effort. Less than two weeks ago, a federal judge ordered the police chief, Howard Jordan, to begin consulting court-appointed monitors before making major changes to policies or tactics.

As the policing challenges have become more demanding, shooters seem to have become more brazen. Police and city anti-violence workers say daytime shootings are on the rise. About half of the weekend's shootings occurred during the day.

In 2011, police made arrests in only 12 percent of gun-related crimes. Only two people have been arrested in this weekend's shootings.

A police spokesperson did not return several calls for comment, but said a press conference would be held Tuesday morning to address the matter.

Some counter-protesters outside City Hall Monday afternoon blamed Occupy Oakland demonstrators for contributing to the crime spike by consuming police resources. Oakland resident Daud Abdullah said police appeared to be too distracted by protests to stop drug dealing in his Maxwell Park neighborhood. "Oakland residents are fed up with the whole movement and what goes along with it," he said. 

Occupy protesters countered that police should be more concerned about the city’s shootings than trying to suppress free speech.

The spate of violence began very early Thursday morning, when a taco truck owner at Fruitvale and Foothill fended off a would-be robber at 1:35 a.m. The shootout landed both victim and suspect in the hospital. At 9:45 a.m., a shooting led police to 89th Avenue and D Street, where they found one person dead. At 8:42 p.m. police declared another gunshot victim dead on the 800 block of 26th Street.

At about 3:40 p.m. Friday, one man was taken to the hospital after he was shot five or six times on the corner of 65th and International Boulevard, the same corner where 2-year-old Carlos Nava was shot to death in a drive-by shooting last year.

Four others were injured at 45th and International when a shooter opened fire at 10 p.m.

At 2:40 p.m. Saturday, a man was killed in a shooting on the 400 block of 105th Avenue. On Sunday, one man was shot in the leg at 12:30 a.m. while he was standing on the corner of Mead and San Pablo Avenue. Later in the afternoon, seven others were injured in separate, but possibly related, shooting incidents, the police said, including one man at 3 p.m. at 59th Street and Telegraph Avenue, and three at a home on the 3300 block of Adeline Street at about 4 p.m. Two other shooting victims dropped themselves off at Highland Hospital.

At 1 a.m., another shooting at 83rd Avenue left a fourth victim dead, the city's 14th homicide of the year.

The Bay City News Service contributed reporting.