Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson announced “enhanced” charges for Cedric Irving, Jr., the suspect in the Nov. 13 shooting of Laney College’s athletic director John Beam, at a police press conference at the René C. Davidson courthouse in Oakland on Monday afternoon.
In California, sentence enhancements are used to add carceral time to the original charges.
The Oakland Police Department (OPD) arrested Irving, a former Laney student, at San Leandro BART station early Friday morning, just after 4 a.m., and booked him in the behavioral health unit at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin that afternoon.
According to the case filing, Irving faces a felony charge “for the murder of Beam.”
If the charge and enhancements stand, Irving is expected to receive two 25 year sentences or potentially a life sentence.
According to a police document, Irving possessed a handgun when he was detained Friday morning. In the same document, Irving “admitted” in an interview with OPD to owning the handgun, and that he had used the gun to shoot Beam.
Jones Dickson said during the press conference that Irving was reportedly seen on Laney’s campus in the past but said he was not a current student at the college.
The Citizen received confirmation from multiple sources, under conditions of anonymity, that Irving was a formerly enrolled Laney student. At the time of writing, the range of dates when Irving attended the college is still unconfirmed.
Mandatory minimums to return to Oakland?
District Attorney Jones Dickson announced her intent to reinstate mandatory minimum sentences as related to the possession and discharge of firearms. She proposed the county implement a minimum of 90 days for misdemeanor gun charges and 180 days for felony gun charges.
Jones Dickson would not give details about the “state of mind” of the defendant or the City of Oakland’s plans moving forward, stating that she “never said there was a mental health issue” at play and that the case was “open” since charges have been made.
“It is important for us to start talking about safety on campuses,” Jones Dickson said. “I think the safest [places] in this country should be school and church.”
She pointed out that the shooting which caused Beam’s death followed a shooting at Skyline High School, and that Skyline students were on Laney’s campus for a tour during the shooting at the Fieldhouse.
“That’s unacceptable […] that this is the norm,” she said.
Irving’s arraignment is set for Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. at the Wiley W. Manuel courthouse in Oakland, CA.
Editor-in-Chief Desmond Meagley and Copy Editor Romi Bales contributed to this reporting.
