in 2011 The Alameda County Sheriff's Office operates a police academy and training exercises for the greater law enforcement community in the Bay Area. The Alameda County Sheriff's Office holds an academy for other agencies too like the Stockton Police Department,
Hayward Police Department,
San Leandro Police Department, the
Alameda Police Department etc...
Urban Shield Developed by former Alameda County Assistant Sheriff James Baker, Urban Shield was a weapons expo and first response training exercise that began in 2007. The goals of the program were to prepare law enforcement tactical teams, including SWAT teams, to respond to crises and coordinate efforts between law enforcement, fire personnel and medical personnel. An additional purpose was to assess the policies, procedures, organization, equipment and training of attending personnel. Hosted in the San Francisco Bay Area by the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, Urban Shield was the largest urban full scale readiness exercise in the United States. Police, fire,
HAZMAT,
EMS and
EOD teams from all over the nation trained in multiple scenarios over a continuous 48-hour program. In the first year, scenarios included an active shooter on the
UC Berkeley campus, an airplane hijacking, a maritime interdiction, and a 20-mile hike. Since 2012, the Bay Area UASI tests portions of the Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program as part of the full scale readiness exercise, such as the regional mass fatality plan. Urban Shield was primarily sponsored by the
Department of Homeland Security, Private corporations including Verizon Wireless, Motorola, SIG Sauer, and Uber offer services and equipment in support of the event, and additional funding comes from private weapons manufacturers such as
Lenco and
Lockheed Martin. In the past, these manufacturers served only the Pentagon, but have expanded sales to civilian police departments and SWAT teams in recent years.
Opposition and end to Urban Shield There have been protests against Urban Shield prior to and during the event every year since 2013. In 2013, the Urban Shield training program was controversially held on the second anniversary of the removal of Occupy Oakland from
Frank Ogawa Plaza. Community activists such as the Stop Urban Shield Coalition recognize Urban Shield as part of a trend of global
militarization and escalated police intervention on civilians. In 2014, activist pressure over Urban Shield led to Mayor
Jean Quan's announcement that Oakland will not host the military weapons expo in 2015, marking the first such move since Urban Shield started in 2007. The following year, the 2016 Urban Shield conference was held at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton, CA and was also opposed by protestors, 20 of whom were arrested for trespassing and obstruction. Protesters expressed that the technology showcased at Urban Shield promotes
police surveillance and control that specifically targets poor people and people of color. The demonstration included performances and speeches to resist the repression. •
Immigration and Customs Enforcement teams participating in the exercises, despite Alameda County being a
sanctuary county. • The Alameda County Sheriff's Office hosting the far-right
Oath Keepers militia at Urban Shield 2017. • An Urban Shield weapons expo vendor referring to Arab, Muslim, and social justice organizations as "terrorists." • The use of props depicting enemies in training scenarios as Muslims, African-Americans, and other darker-skinned minorities. In 2018, the Stop Urban Shield Coalition and community organizations successfully pressured the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to put an end to the program. In 2019, the Board of Supervisors reaffirmed their decision to end the program, and Urban Shield was defunded. == Crime laboratory ==