"It was from Councilmember Ken Houston. Houston represents deep East Oakland, and illegal dumping is his bugbear. Before he was elected to the City Council in 2024, he headed the Beautification Council, a nonprofit that's received substantial contracts from the city and county to clean up the streets. In Facebook posts going back a decade, and more recently from the council dais and in interviews, Houston has repeatedly called for the prosecution of people and companies that violate the law by trashing Oakland neighborhoods."
"According to the police report, it was all a big misunderstanding. Houston told the officer he'd actually asked the man to empty the dumpster's contents and remove the container from the intersection. Houston had told him he'd arrange for the city's Public Works Department to clean up the trash later. "Based on the information provided" by Houston, the officer wrote, the man who'd driven the truck was "released from handcuffs without further incident.""
An East Oakland business owner alerted police to illegal dumping at 100th Avenue and Pearmain Street, where officers found a man with a large dumpster attached to a truck and piles of waste. Officers handcuffed the man on suspicion of unlawful waste disposal, a misdemeanor carrying fines and jail time. Councilmember Ken Houston called and said he had asked the man to empty the dumpster's contents, remove the container, and that he would arrange for city Public Works to clean up the trash. Based on Houston's information, the officer released the man. The incident reflects Houston's hands-on approach to cleanup and has provoked controversy.
Read at The Oaklandside
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