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Alameda County DA outlines expanded victim services and surge in referrals at Albany Council meeting
Summary
Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dixon updated Albany Council on efforts to rebuild prosecutorial capacity, expand victim‑witness services, relaunch targeted units (hate crimes, human trafficking), and launch a regional organized retail theft task force; she cited rising referrals, gun‑related cases, and theft filings in 2025.
Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dixon briefed the Albany City Council on April 6 about the DA office’s work to support survivors and strengthen prosecutions across the county, and she outlined new and relaunching initiatives aimed at improving outcomes for victims of crime.
Dixon described steps her office has taken since assuming leadership: reviewing and charging more cases (the office reviewed tens of thousands of referrals), restructuring units to address organized retail theft, affirming Marcy‑guaranteed victim services, and expanding programs focused on human trafficking, wage theft and hate crimes. She said the office has also relaunched grant initiatives and pursued a top‑to‑bottom fiscal and operational review to remove internal bottlenecks to charging and prosecution.
Data and programs cited: Dixon referenced a jump in referrals and filings in 2025 (including an increase in cases carrying gun charges — the presentation cited 1,432 gun‑related custody referrals in 2025 in the materials shown), and she highlighted victim‑witness assistance, the Trauma Recovery Center, and work to help victims apply for California Victim Compensation Board (CalVCB) benefits. The DA noted the office was selected as one of four counties to pilot an AB 1344 gun violence restraining order program for prosecutors.
Council questions focused on operational detail: members asked for clarification of terms (for example, what 'in custody' referrals mean procedurally and the DA explained the 48‑hour review timeline for in‑custody cases) and about interpreter availability for non‑English‑speaking victims; Dixon said interpreter services are available through the courts and the office has some multilingual staff but relies on interpreters for less‑common languages.
Dixon also invited town halls and community listening sessions to improve trust and communications between the DA’s office and cities in Alameda County.
Quotes: "We are rebuilding community trust," Dixon told the council. "We've launched the regional organized retail theft task force ... we've been reviewing over 22,000 referrals and increasing felony filings."
The council thanked the DA for the briefing and asked staff to follow up with any additional clarifications requested by members.
