Reports late Sunday night of an "imminent" raid on Occupy Oakland quickly spread to the protesters.
Via:
"The Oakland Police Department is planning an enormous operation to evict hundreds of Occupy Oakland protesters from their encampment near City Hall early Monday morning, according to police and city officials with direct knowledge of the plans."
"Oakland has agreed to pay for 700-to-1,000 officers from numerous agencies to be deployed over the next three days, according to an Oakland official who agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity. The operation was shaping up as the largest and most expensive police action in Oakland in recent memory."
"The cost of the operation could reach $1 million, the official said. Combined with the city's previous effort to evict the protesters, including at least two violent clashes, cleanup and private security that may be hired to prevent the protesters from resettling on the plaza, the overall cost of Occupy Oakland could reach $5 million, he said."
The city of Oakland closed 13 schools this year to "save" $2 million. Crushing a group of peaceful campers? Priceless.
Thirty-two people were arrested today, including many clergy members, and Occupy Oakland's tent city has been dismantled.
The decision to evict the protesters by Mayor Jean Quan has cost her more than the $1 million she shelled out for extra police back-up. Dan Siegel, Quan's legal adviser, posted on Facebook that he has resigned over Monday's police raid of Occupy Oakland.
Via:
His Facebook post: "No longer Mayor Quan's legal adviser. Resigned at 2 am. Support Occupy Oakland, not the 1% and its government facilitators."
Siegel and Quan have been friends for decades, since they attended University of California, Berkeley together. Siegel was on Quan's transition team before she took office in January and stayed on as an adviser after that, drawing controversy when he openly opposed a gang injunction policy sought by the city attorney.
I wonder if Jean Quan is aware that there are people camping outside of the movie theaters waiting to see the latest "Twilight" movie? Die-hard "Twilight" fans beware!
