A Report On People Under Criminal Justice Supervision In Alameda County

Over the past decade, the number of adults in the US incarcerated by State or Federal authorities grew from 1,585,586 in 1995 to 2,135,901 in 2004, an average increase of 3.4% annually and a period increaseof one-third.1 In California, the prison population has grown over the last 10 years from 135,133 peoplein prison in 1995 to 163,939 by 2004 for an average of 2.75% annually and a period increase of over 21%.One of the realities of this massive increase in incarceration is that "they all come back." Over the last 10 years, the number of adults on parole from State or Federal prisons increased from 679,421 in 1995 to 765,355 in 2004, for an average annual rate of 2.7% and a period increase of 17%. Following the national pattern, the number of adults on parole in California increased by from 90,450 in 1995, to 110,130 in 2004, for an average annual rate of 2.3% and a period increase of over 21%. California leads the nation in the number of adults on parole; at the end of 2004 over 14% of people on parole in the US had been released from California prisons

2007 Homicide Report: An Analysis of Homicides in Oakland from January through December, 2007

In past years Urban Strategies Council has produced quarterly or biannual reports on homicides in Oakland using detailed data provided by the Oakland Police Department's Homicide Section. Due to staffing shortages, the Oakland police Department is no longer able to provide this detailed data to the Council. As a result the 2007 Homicide Report uses data gleaned from public sources and some aggregated tables from the OPD's official report. From these data we have created this report on the characteristics of the 127 homicides that occurred in Oakland from January 1 through December 31, 2007. This report presents annual data from 2007 and shows how characteristics of homicides in Oakland changed from 2006 to 2007 and how 2007 homicides compare with the five -- year averages from 2003-2007.This report summarizes available information such as victim demographic characteristics (suspect details are less complete and less precise), locations and times of the incidents. Comparing 2007 data to a five-year average of homicides helps to provide a context for understanding whether there are emerging patterns that differ substantially from the patterns in prior years.This year sees the inclusion of some additional types of data relating to the nature of the homicides taking place in Oakland such as premises and types of weapons involved

A Survey of Selected National Organizations Providing Support to the Community Building Field

In recent years, community building has emerged as a powerful, comprehensive approach to neighborhood improvement. Increasing numbers of national and local organizations use community building to describe the ways in which they work to improve outcomes for children and families in low-wealth neighborhoods. As a local and national technical assistance provider and resource to the field, the Urban Strategies Council (the Council) set out to conduct a limited scan of the national organizations providing programs and services to support community building practitioners.In early 1999, the Council surveyed a dozen national organizations involved in community building support to identify the core strategies they employ to support practitioners and the development of the field. We also asked about the target populations for their supports and services. The twelve organizations were not selected through scientific sampling methods and are certainly not a representative sample; rather, they include organizations known to us and engaged in work that they identify as community building.This report presents the findings of the scan. The report begins with a brief review of community building definitions. It then presents a summary of the methodology used to conduct the scan. It continues with a review of our findings about strategies used by the responding organizations and the target populations that are the focus of their work. The report concludes with implications we draw from this limited scan and a discussion of possible next steps for the field along this line of inquiry

An Analysis of Homicides in Oakland 2003, 2004 and 2005

This report summarizes changes in specific characteristics of homicides over the past three years, such as victim/suspect demographic characteristics, locations and methods of the crimes and the parole/probation status of victims and suspects. In addition to presenting annual data for 2003, 2004, and 2005, the tables and figures in this report show how characteristics of the homicides changed from year to year and over the three year period.In general there was an overall homicide increase of 7% from 2004 (88 homicides) to 2005 (94 homicides). While this increase does represent a troubling trend, total homicides remain well below the 20 year average of 111.8 homicides per year, and represents a decrease of 17% from 2003.Demographic trends also appear to have shifted from 2004 to 2005 for both the victims and suspects. The percentage of Black victims and suspects dropped from 2004, while Latino and Asian victims and suspects both increased. The number of identified Latino homicide suspects is especially troubling, rising from 7 in 2004 to 13 in 2005. Finally, the number of suspects who were known to be on probation/parole status decreased from 59% to 49%

An Analysis of Homicides in Oakland 2002, 2003 and 2004

The number of homicides committed in Oakland decreased substantially between 2003 and 2004. The decline has been attributed, in part, to the Oakland Police Department's Violence Reduction Plan launched in October 2003, greater collaboration between local and state law enforcement agencies, and increased community involvement in violence prevention activities.This report summarizes changes in specific characteristics of homicides over the past three years, such as victim and suspect demographic characteristics, locations of the crimes, the parole/probation status of victims and suspects, and the time of day and month that the homicides were committed. In addition to presenting annual data for 2002, 2003, and 2004, the tables and figures in this report show how characteristics of the homicides changed from year to year and over the three-year period

2006 Homicide Report: An Analysis of Homicides in Oakland from January through December, 2006

Urban Strategies Council has produced quarterly reports on homicides in Oakland throughout 2006. Through the cooperation of the Oakland Police Department Homicide Section, we have obtained detailed information on the homicides occurring during 2006. From these data we have created this report on the characteristics of the 148 homicides that occurred in Oakland from January 1 through December 31, 2006. This report presents annual data from 2006 and shows how characteristics of homicides in Oakland changed from 2005 to 2006 and how 2006 homicides compare with the five -- year averages from 2001-2005.This report summarizes available information such as victim and/or suspect demographic characteristics, locations and times of the incidents. Comparing 2006 data to a five-year average of homicides helps to provide a context for understanding whether there are emerging patterns that differ substantially from the patterns in prior years

African American Male Achievement Initiative: A Deeper Look At African American Males In OUSD

This report provides further insights into the status of African American boys in Oakland Unified School Distric (OUSD) and aims to reverse the academic and social inequities they face in seven key areas: the achievement gap, graduation rates, literacy, suspensions, attendance, middle school holding power, and juvenile detention. A framework of three levels of well-being (on course, at risk of falling off course, and off course) was used to understand how African American male students are faring in these areas

African American Male Achievement Initiative: A Closer Look At Attendance Of African American Males In OUSD

This report examines data, best practices, and policies related to attendance and chronic absence and offers recommendations for reducing the levels of chromic absence for African American males in Oakland Unified School District (OUSD). It analyzes one year of attendance data (2010-2011) for African American males in OUSD, looking at chronic absence by grade level, types of absence, and reasons given for absence, as well as comparing rates of chronic absence to other males groups in OUSD

African American Male Achievement Initiative: A Closer Look At Suspensions Of African American Males In OUSD

This report examines the data, literature, and policy around suspensions of African American male students to uncover and better understand the disparities between this group and all other ethnic and gender groups. This report analyzes one year of suspension data from the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD, 2010-11), looking at suspensions by demographics, grade level, school level, and types of offenses

State of Bay Area Blacks

The Bay Area has seen many changes in the past twenty years, changes in the housing stock, in the education sector, in the employment opportunities and the industries based here, in the workforce development arena, in economic development activities, and in the demographics of its populace. Long recognized as a multi-cultural region with rich ethnic communities tied to established neighborhoods, the diversity of the Bay Area has changed constantly, with no ethnic group remaining demographically static over the past two decades. For organizations and individuals involved in serving and supporting the Black and African-American communities in the Bay Area, it is important to understand the changes that are impacting these communities and how these populations themselves are changing. This report examines the State of the Race: an analysis of the changing Black community in the Bay Area and begins to present data and information pertinent to the philanthropic, community building, and governmental sectors.This report sets out to answer four main questions posed by the Bay Area Blacks in Philanthropy (the commissioners and funders of this report). Where did African-Americans reside in the Bay Area in 2000 and what changes occurred through 2008?What are the population characteristics of the African-American community and how do they compare to other racial/ethnic groups?What cities and neighborhoods had the highest concentration of African-Americans in 2000 and 2008?What are the most significant needs in African-American communities and what are the implications for philanthropic investments in the African-American communities