Crime in Oakland dropped. Here’s how officials plan to keep it down

OAKLAND — Throughout 2023 and rolling into last year, this city on the east end of the Bay Bridge found itself where it’s often been — downcast and written off. A crime wave swept the city , even creeping into its tonier northern neighborhoods. High-profile chains like In-N-Out Burger and Denny’s closed outlets, saying Oakland had become too dangerous.

Voters recalled both the mayor and the district attorney of Alameda County last year. And the civic mood turned even darker at the start of 2025, when federal officials indicted former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao on charges of corruption.

Though Oakland continues to struggle to find enough police to patrol its streets, to deal with homelessness and to deliver services, a random sampling this week found residents mostly optimistic that t