By Steven Symes 
Yet another street takeover ended in violence recently, and yet again someone died. This time it was in Oakland, California, a hotbed of the movement and reputedly the birthplace of the street takeover or sideshow scene. This incident, like so many others, just proves street takeovers aren’t innocent fun and are something nobody should be attending.
16 shot during a single street takeover event.
With no real organization to them, street takeover participants often hit each other or mow down spectators who stand sometimes within inches of the cars. The latter happened at a takeover in Oakland on the night of January 26.
After a driver spun out and hit at least one spectator, someone opened fire. Immediately, at least two other people returned fire as the crowd scattered. People jumped in their vehicles and tried to get away from the carnage unfolding.
Ultimately, three people were shot. One died and the other two have been hospitalized. A report from KTVU doesn’t disclose anything about the victims and says nothing about any shooters being arrested or even identified by police.
Speaking of police, the report notes Oakland officers were staging nearby to address the takeover. Likely they were looking to break it up, which they had reportedly done earlier in the night only for everyone to converge on the new location.
What it comes down to is Oakland Police Department doesn’t have the manpower to address these massive street takeover events. After funding for the police was slashed by the city government, this and other crimes have been rampant.
People in Oakland in this interview and many others we’ve seen over the past four-plus years are frustrated by their city being treated as a playground for criminal activity, including street takeovers. We can’t blame them. Something needs to be done to address the problem or there will be more incidents like this one over the weekend.
Image via KTVU Fox 2 San Francisco/YouTube