Ali Winston

Exceptional reporting on the history of the Oakland Police Department. The authors reach back as far as the department's inception, a century or so ago, but the main thrust of the book is the Riders scandal, when a group of cops were planting drugs, beating citizens and falsifying reports. They trace the response of the community and the city, and the work of two attorneys who led the charge for police reform, up to today. The story's ending is encouraging -- the Negotiated Settlement Agreement accomplishes, after decades, what everyone hoped it would, and stringent oversight is no longer essential to ensure civil rights are respected. Hard to read the whole book, though, and not worry that the department, so good at backsliding, might do so again.

The Riders Come Out at Night is an excellent history for anyone interested in reforming policing, and many departments in the US need that right now. It's especially interesting to folks living in the San Francisco Bay Area or (like me) in the East Bay, since most of the stories the book documents are fresh in local memory.

Really liked this one.… (mere)

Winston has been reporting on the OPD for over 20 years, and this book is the culmination of his following the PD's NSA, the scandals (so many scandals), the internal investigations, the punishments, the overturning of punishments, the changes in mayors and chiefs and personnel. This book is dense, with a lot of information and detail, and is impeccably sourced. I also found it a bit repetitive--but that is because the actual events are repetitive. Scandal--punishments--firing--hiring--improvement--scandal--etc etc etc. This department has been such a mess that the original judge overseeing the NSA retired despite wanting to see it through. Mayors come, mayors go, police chiefs come and go--I am very curious as to who is really controlling the atrocious behavior within the department. A seemingly competent chief comes, makes progress--and then loses ground. Is it the police union itself--and how and why? Is it institutional inertia? An old boys club that is larger than who is affected by the NSA? Both?

If you have read Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley the scandal that inspired her novel on is discusses in depth near the end of this book. It is quite different and much more complicated in real life.… (mere)