The Oakland police officers union blamed the country's defunding the police movement for the death of a 23-month-old toddler who lost his life after a shootout in one of the city's freeways after a mass shooting over the weekend.
In a statement, the Oakland Police Officers' Association wrote that the city's "sad reality" has been evident from back-to-back tragedies. They noted the young toddler, identified as Jasper Wu, was killed by what officers believe was a stray bullet on Saturday. In the evening of that same day, another murder took place.
23-Month-Old Toddler's Death
Investigators said that there was a shootout between vehicles on I-880 in Oakland on Saturday at around 2:10 p.m. While the California Highway Patrol did not believe the armed suspects were aiming for Jasper's mother's car, the family was caught in the middle of the crossfire.
Officials reported that Jasper was shot and quickly transported to a children's hospital but immediately died due to the severity of his injuries. Police said that the shooters are still free and that no arrests have been made in relation to the shootout, Kron4 reported.
Jasper's aunt said during an interview that she and other family members of the victim were traveling home from San Francisco to Fremont when the stray bullet hit the young toddler. The victim was allegedly struck in the head. The aunt said three other children were sitting in the back of the car that Jasper's mother was driving at the time.
Officials shut down the northbound side of I-880 starting at 23rd Avenue for more than three hours after the incident took place. Reports revealed that the temporary shut down of the route caused traffic to back up for at least five miles.
"Evidence collected on the northbound side of the freeway may indicate the victims were not targeted and the child passenger was struck by a stray bullet," said the California Highway Patrol in a news release on Saturday, People reported.
Rising Violence in Oakland
Jasper's father is planning to travel from China to attend his son's funeral after not having met the child since he was born, said a spokesperson for the family. The president of Oakland's Chinatown Chamber of Commerce said that Jasper was sleeping inside his mother's car when the stray bullet struck him in the head. The official has been working with the victim's family with funeral arrangements and getting an online fundraising page set up.
Chan said that no one, not one parent or family member, would have expected a stray bullet hitting a car and killing a sleeping child. He added that it was a tragedy that Jasper will never be able to celebrate his second birthday this coming December.
Jasper's mother was grief-stricken after the incident but was staying strong while focusing on making sure that no other parent was going to suffer from a similar incident, said Chan. Additionally, he said that Oakland's homicide rate was surging, which resulted in Chan requesting more resources in policing. In October, the city surpassed its 2020 homicide total, rising by 40% from 2019, Mercury News reported.
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