Family Says California ‘Anarchist’ Baker Killed in Robbery Would Not Have Wanted Suspect Jailed

The baker who died during a robbery in Oakland, California, on Thursday would have not wanted the suspect prosecuted, loved ones say.

“I think Jen would affirm that of course that’s what people have been trained to believe is the answer, to lock people up. But we know that if the people who cause her harm are sent to jail, all we’re doing is perpetuating more harm,” claimed Emily Harris, who was a close friend of Jen Angel, the owner of Angel Cakes bakery.

The woman died due to injuries she received when armed thieves broke her car window while she was outside a Wells Fargo, according to Fox News.

She tried to chase the suspects when they fled with her belongings but became caught in their vehicle’s door. As they left the scene, the woman was dragged, and her head slammed into a sidewalk.

She was pronounced dead after two attempts to remove her from life support.

As of Sunday afternoon, a GoFundMe page for Angel had raised $144,690 of its $200,00 goal.

An update on Thursday read:

As a long-time social movement activist and anarchist, Jen did not believe in state violence, carceral punishment, or incarceration as an effective or just solution to social violence and inequity. The outpouring of support and care for Jen, her family and friends, and the values she held dear is a resounding demonstration of the response to harm that Jen believed in: community members relying on one another, leading with love, centering the needs of the most vulnerable, and not resorting to vengeance and inflicting more harm.

Angel’s organs were reportedly donated to help others, Zocalo Coffeehouse said in a social media post on Friday.

“Jen was one of the good ones. After having known each other as activists, we supported each other as small business women,” the post read:

Prior to her death, community members gathered outside the Angel Cakes bakery to express their sadness over what happened, KTVU reported:

“She had such a hard time keeping it going during the pandemic, and then there was the car crash that ruined the front of the bakery. It was so important to her to keep it going, to keep the jobs for the people she supported,” friend Michelle Nogales told the outlet.

Meanwhile, if Oakland police made an arrest regarding the case, “the family is committed to pursuing all available alternatives to traditional prosecution, such as restorative justice,” relatives said.

Officers are investigating it as a homicide and believe a pair of suspects, known to police, were involved. However, no one has been arrested so far, the Fox report stated.