(KRON) — Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price responded on Friday to a letter sent on behalf of her acting employees that accused her of making threats and using “mob boss tactics.”
The letter, which was sent to Price’s team and written by a lawyer representing the employees, claims she uses armed private guards in her office and threatened to arrest employees who financially supported the recall effort against her. Price called the language in the letter “not only unprecedented and disrespectful but … also a racially charged dog whistle.”
Armed guards in the office
According to the letter addressed to Price, the DA hired private security personnel armed with guns. Employees claim this is unprecedented in the Alameda County DA’s office, as the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office previously provided security.
“These unverified personal armed guards created an atmosphere of fear in the office,” the attorney, Daniel Horowitz, wrote.
The letter claims that the sheriff’s office banned these guards from the courthouse, causing Price to relocate to 7677 Oakport St. in Oakland. DA’s employees claim they are “afraid” to go to the new location, as there are no sheriff’s deputies present.
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Employees further claim that “gang members and criminals” are present at the office.
In a response from Price’s office on Friday, she called the allegations regarding the armed guards “one hundred percent false.” She claims the armed staffers at her office are retired law enforcement officers who work for Alameda County, are Peace Officer Standards and Training certified and have passed background checks.
Threats to arrest employees who support recall movement
The letter states that Price “recently issued threats of arrest to members of the district attorney’s office who actively raised money to support the recall campaign.”
On Feb. 16, 2024, Price allegedly sent an email with the subject “Election Season Reminder re: Campaign Activities.” In it, as part of a Grand Jury report, she claimed that California Government Code §3205 is a criminal offense, the lawyer wrote. The code reads:
“An employee of a government agency shall not solicit political contributions from an employee of the same or another government agency.”
In short, the employees are claiming that Price threatened to arrest any of them who raised money for the recall effort against her, citing Section 3205. She added that employees should “govern yourselves accordingly.”
However, in July 2023, a court ruled that the law violates the First Amendment. After this, California Attorney General Rob Bonta sent a formal notice to every district attorney in California telling them not to enforce Section 3205, the letter claims. Price’s email allegedly came after this notice, disobeying Bonta’s order.
“This threat to make an arrest under a statute ruled unconstitutional is consistent with Pamela Price’s history of abuse of power,” the letter said.
Section 3205 was again cited in an email sent in May by Chief Assistant District Attorney Royl Roberts, the letter claims.
In her response to the letter on Friday, Price said it was “completely false” that she threatened employees. She acknowledged that Section 3205 is no longer enforced and said that has been communicated to her staff.
Demands
The employees listed three demands for Price at the end of the letter:
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Stop using armed private security guards at the courthouse and the DA’s office
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Stop threatening job actions against employees who oppose her
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Retract her assertion that Section 3205 is operative and state that county employees are permitted to solicit funds to support her recall.
The group is considering legal options, including state and federal intervention.
In her response, Price accused the letter of using racially charged language.
“Calling DA Pamela Price a ‘mob boss’ is not only unprecedented and disrespectful but is
also a racially charged dog whistle designed to undermine trust in the county’s first Black district
attorney in the minds of the public.”
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