by Vanguard Staff OAKLAND, CA – The Anti Police-Terror Project (APTP) is calling for an end to high-speed vehicle pursuits by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) through Oakland neighborhoods after another chase ended in tragedy this week. The pursuit, initiated by CHP on Wednesday night, resulted in the death of an innocent bystander and injuries to another individual. This marks the fourth such fatality in the Bay Area in recent months.
In response, APTP will hold a candlelight vigil on Friday, May 30 at 6:00 p.m. at the intersection of 12th Avenue and East 21st Street—near the site of the latest fatal crash.
“How many more of our people have to die before the state admits that its obsession with control is costing us our lives?” said Cat Brooks, Co-Founder and Executive Director of APTP. “These chases are not about public safety. They are about showing force. They are about domination. And they are turning our streets into battlegrounds where Black and Brown lives are treated as expendable.”
The incident comes amid efforts by law enforcement leaders, including Oakland Police Chief Floyd Mitchell and Governor Gavin Newsom, to loosen restrictions on vehicle pursuits—a move APTP and other advocates argue will put more lives at risk. The group criticized what it called the state’s prioritization of “law-and-order rhetoric” over community safety, despite years of research showing the dangers of high-speed pursuits in urban areas.
CHP officers, according to APTP, are not accountable to Oakland residents, yet continue to operate aggressively in city neighborhoods. The group cited the 2020 fatal shooting of Erik Salgado and his unborn child (as his girlfriend Brianna Colombo was wounded) by CHP officers as an example of past harm, and said the latest incident is part of a continuing pattern of state violence.
“CHP has already proven deadly,” the group wrote in a public statement. “Now, they’ve taken another life, and Oaklanders are left to pick up the pieces while CHP walks away without explanation.”
National studies have found that most police pursuits are initiated over non-violent offenses and often result in injuries or fatalities for bystanders rather than suspects. APTP argues the normalization of these chases is less about public safety and more about state power and control.
The organization issued three demands in the aftermath of the latest crash:
- An immediate halt to high-speed police chases in densely populated residential areas.
- Full public transparency from CHP regarding the justification for the pursuit.
- A firm commitment from Oakland city leaders to oppose any efforts to weaken OPD’s vehicle pursuit policy and to reinvest in alternatives centered on care and community safety.
Friday’s vigil will serve as both a memorial and a public demonstration. APTP urged community members to show up and resist what it called “state terror in motion.”
“We will not stand by while our people are slaughtered in the name of ‘public safety,’” the group said.
