Fired Oakland police chief finds role as high school basketball coach

Former Oakland police Chief LeRonne Armstrong is managing to keep busy while he waits to learn what his future in law enforcement holds. Controversially removed as chief earlier this year, Armstrong has found new work as an assistant high school basketball coach for the Bishop O’Dowd High School boys basketball team.

Armstrong joined the Oakland Police Department in 1999, working his way up to chief in 2021. He was fired from the post by Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao in February of this year, who cited Armstrong’s response to misconduct allegations as cause for his dismissal. 

However, many disagreed with Thao’s decision. Following an inquiry into the firing, an independent arbitrator sided with Armstrong in September, stating, “The discipline imposed on Chief Armstrong should be reversed and removed from his personnel record.”

Thao has come under fire from many influential groups, including the Oakland NAACP, for how she’s handled the situation. Armstrong has applied to be reinstated as chief, but while his reinstatement is weighed, Armstrong can be found on the sideline, helping guide the Bishop O’Dowd Dragons’ boys team through the 2023-24 season.

A Catholic high school in the Oakland hills, Bishop O’Dowd is known for its athletic prowess. While not on the level of fellow East Bay Catholic school De La Salle, O’Dowd has turned out a number of professional athletes, including former Warriors guard Brian Shaw and current NFL safety Jevon Holland.

Armstrong told KTVU-TV that he’s known O’Dowd head coach Lou Richie since their playing days and that Richie had often asked Armstrong to work with the team (Armstrong’s three children all graduated from the school). Suddenly with a glut of unforeseen freetime, Armstrong decided to take Richie up on his offer.

As volunteer assistant coach, Armstrong helps with analytics, including tracking players’ in-game efficiency, Armstrong told SFGATE. He also mentors a few individual players both on and off the court.

Armstrong himself played point guard for nearby McClymonds High School before competing collegiately for Sacramento State, where he averaged 8.4 points and four assists per game. When he was on the force, Armstrong helped out with various youth basketball initiatives. But his stint with O’Dowd marks his first time coaching basketball in an official capacity. While his professional career is in flux, he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of trying to coach professionally.

“I think it’s, you know, a little early for me to figure out what I want to do long term,” Armstrong told SFGATE, a reference to the ongoing saga around his termination and quest for reinstatement as police chief. “But I definitely think, obviously, basketball is something that’s near and dear to, and it’s something that … created an opportunity for me.”

He’s gotten no complaints from the higher-ups at O’Dowd.

“We are almost one month into this basketball season, and Mr. Armstrong has had a positive impact on the team thus far,” wrote Bishop O’Dowd Athletic Director Carlos Reed in an email to SFGATE.

While Armstrong’s role with the team is on a volunteer basis, he’s benefiting from his name and situation with the police department staying in the news via the new gig. Since joining the coaching staff, Armstrong has done interviews with KTVU, CBS News Bay Area (KPIX-TV), NBC Bay Area (KNTV-TV), Oaklandside and now SFGATE. But Armstrong doesn’t see the extra attention around his ongoing professional issues as a negative distraction for the team. Instead he chooses to frame it as a learning opportunity.

“My career has always been about resiliency. And those aspects of who I am I actually learned from sports,” Armstrong told SFGATE. “Sometimes you lose and sometimes you win. And it’s just about your ability to get back up and try and get it right.

“I’ve told [the student-athletes] like, ‘Hey, you know, this is about perseverance, right? No different than we’re going to have difficult times during the basketball season, you’re going to have ups and downs and very tough times. But the question is … how you respond.’”

Distraction or not, Armstrong is adamant that if he were to be reinstated as chief, it would have no affect on his dedication to the team.

“I made a commitment to these young people. Regardless of what happens, I’m going to carry through on that commitment,” Armstrong said.