By Kaylynn Chang
OAKLAND, CA — Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price has announced a reorganization of her office by introducing the Gender Justice Division and the Advancing Justice Division, focusing on identity-based exploitations.
Looking to finally emphasize the importance of ensuring public safety and bolster the efforts to do so through these new divisions, Price said the new division fulfills the DA’s long-standing goal.
Price remarked that “shortly after I took office in January 2023, we began researching innovations in other jurisdictions to attack gender-motivated crimes and the impacts on our community,” highlighting how gender often plays a role in power dynamics leading to various forms of exploitation and violence.
Since June 2023, the office said Price and Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez and his Chief Deputy Michelle Kaminsky, who oversees their Gender-Based Justice Division, met to work together to create the Anti-Slavery Prosecution Unit (ASPU) in November 2023, consolidating human exploitation crimes under its jurisdiction by December 2023.
Price’s office also detailed Senior Deputy District Attorney Justin Kollar, with 16 years of experience and a background as the former DA of Kauai, will lead the Gender Justice Division.
The Advancing Justice Division will be headed by Senior Assistant District Attorney Tiffany Gibson, a seasoned prosecutor with 28 years of experience. This division includes the Juvenile Justice Division, Collaborative Courts, the Civil Rights Bureau, and the Consumer Justice Bureau.
DA Price noted that “the new division will include the new Anti-Slavery Prosecution Unit, the Sexual Assault Unit, the Family Justice Center, the Victim Witness Division, and the Domestic Violence Prosecution Units, which handles misdemeanor and felony cases.”
Price added she “appreciate(s) the leadership of both District Attorneys Gibson and Kollar as they have stepped up to help us implement a new vision of justice for our office and our county,” predicting this reorganization will bring effective and fair prosecution strategies to address Alameda County’s most persistent and devastating problems of crime and inequity.
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https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2024/06/25/courts/otis-bruce-jr-da-pamela-price-top-deputy-resigns/