Firefighter claims racial profiling but police say officer did job properly & release video of Oakland firehouse confrontation
A black Oakland firefighter said he was the victim of racial profiling when a white city police officer kept his hand on his gun while temporarily detaining him and his two sons at a fire station, mistakenly believing he might be a burglar.
The Aug. 15 incident traumatized his sons, said fire Engineer Keith Jones, 43, of Oakland, who filed a formal complaint with police internal affairs and the Citizens’ Police Review Board.
“I do feel racism played a part in this case, just by the treatment of my kids,” Jones said Wednesday. “He was in the same crouched position, ready to pull his gun.”
But Oakland police officials said the officer’s response was “within policy,” and they released a video from the officer’s city-issued chest camera that appeared to contradict some of Jones’ account.
Jones, a 15-year veteran of the department, said the “nervous” officer, crouched with his hand on his gun, kept his 9- and 12-year-old sons with their hands up outside Oakland’s Fire Station 29 at 1016 66th Ave..
The incident has left his two young sons afraid of the police, said Jones, who has filed a complaint against the department.
Oakland police released a statement Wednesday afternoon saying that the department’s internal review of the incident was complete and investigators found that the officer acted within policy. The department also released body-mounted camera footage of the incident from two officers.
The Oakland Fire Department called Oakland police at 10:39 p.m. the night of the incident because the doors of Station 29 might have been left open, police said. A police officer arrived at 10:51 p.m.
Jones was coming home from an Oakland Raiders game when he noticed the open doors and asked his sons to wait outside while he checked out the firehouse and made sure everything was secure. When he returned, Jones said that Martinelli had arrived and told him to stop and put his hands up.
His two sons already had their hands up as the officer kept a crouched position with his hand on the butt of his service weapon, according to Jones. His sons were shaking and crying, Jones said.
Click here if video above fails to play (this is the original story done by KPIX-TV with Firefighter Jones, prior to the release of the video from the officers)
Kristin J. Bender, MercuryNews.com:
“I don’t think it would have played out the same way (if we were white). I think this officer looked at my kids from that standpoint that they were up to no good ’cause they are young black kids. This whole incident has taken an emotional toll on them, and it bothers them.”
“I really thought he was going to shoot me then because he seemed so unstable,” Jones said.
Police on Wednesday evening released a statement from police chief Sean Whent.
“The video footage allows the community to see the events as they occurred. The officers clearly acted within policy. We continue to be committed to transparency,” he said.
