California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, called on Oakland officials Friday to amend an "extreme" policy that generally only allows police to chase suspected criminals in cases of "violent forcible crimes."

The governor sent a letter to Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, the Oakland City Council and the Oakland Police Commission urging them to reconsider the Oakland Police Department (OPD) policy that limits officers' ability to pursue suspects.

"Although some California jurisdictions allow vehicle pursuits for only certain crimes (e.g., felonies), Oakland is an outlier by imposing exceptional restrictions on OPD's ability to police criminal activity, generally permitting pursuits only for 'violent forcible crimes,' as defined in OPD's policy, and crimes involving firearms," Newsom wrote. 

The letter said that, unlike most other jurisdictions in the state, local police in Oakland are prohibited from pursuing people suspected of committing various felonies and any misdemeanor, including those that are violent, as well as other offenses that endanger public safety, such as reckless driving, sideshow activity and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

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"I am mindful of the sensitivities around vehicle pursuits, which can be dangerous to police, suspects, and innocent bystanders," the governor wrote. "California's Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training recognizes and addresses this in its standard-setting guidance. But there is also extreme danger to the public in allowing criminals to act with impunity, and the reckless driving associated with sideshows and other criminal acts is a significant threat to public safety — as witnessed regularly by the public in viral videos and news coverage."

This comes after Newsom's recent move to increase California Highway Patrol (CHP) in Oakland to conduct surge operations targeting organized crime, sideshows, carjackings and other criminal activity.

Newsom said the move quickly produced several arrests of suspects accused of committing these crimes. Two days after the governor's announcement, the CHP used ground and airborne assets to conduct a surge operation targeting sideshows. Several vehicle pursuits through that operation led to five felony arrests, eight DUIs, the recovery of eight stolen vehicles and the seizure of two guns.

"In the course of the CHP’s operations, however, they have observed, based on their professional law enforcement experience and expertise, certain dynamics that are contributing to Oakland's public safety challenges," Newsom wrote in the letter. "In particular, the CHP has brought to my attention that they observed criminals often fleeing with impunity because it’s common knowledge that the Oakland Police Department’s ('OPD') pursuit policy allows vehicle pursuits in only very limited circumstances."

Newsom said CHP observed suspects attempting to avoid arrest by using the same routes, meaning that the suspects knew where OPD would stop chasing them. But, the governor said, the suspects were unable to avoid the six pursuits initiated by CHP, which had a number of resources available to them, including air support.

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"Any policy on vehicle pursuits must be clear-eyed in balancing the risks and benefits involved," Newsom's letter read. "Because of Oakland's public safety challenges and the degree to which OPD's pursuit policy is an outlier among California law enforcement agencies, I support the recent action by the City Council to direct a review of this policy.

"I urge you to reconsider whether OPD should be permitted to pursue suspects in more circumstances to improve public safety in your city and to establish a process to evaluate whether OPD is making full use of its authority, including that granted under the existing pursuit policy, to protect public safety and enforce the law," he continued.

Newsom concluded his letter by saying he is committed to improving public safety in Oakland and across California. He said there have been some recent improvements in public safety, but that officials "owe it to our communities to continue to search for solutions."

Today is Bugs Bunny’s 83rd birthday — it was on this day in history, July 27, 1940, Bugs Bunny debuted in "A Wild Hare," a short animated film released by Warner Brothers.  

The cotton-tailed friend has become known in pop culture for his iconic question: "What’s up, Doc?"

The basic plot of "A Wild Hare" chronicles Elmer Fudd's fruitless pursuit of the much smarter Bugs Bunny. 

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Elmer Fudd peers down rabbit holes, taunts Bugs with carrots and tries (unsuccessfully) to catch him. 

"Finally, the frustrated Elmer, driven to distraction by the rabbit's antics, walks away sobbing … Bugs then begins to play his carrot like a fife, playing the tune ‘The Girl I Left Behind Me,' and marches with one stiff leg toward his rabbit hole," according to the Looney Tunes Fandom site. 

The short film was nominated for an Academy Award for "Best Short Subject: Cartoons," according to the Warner Brothers official website.

Bugs Bunny was conceived at Leon Schlesinger’s animation unit at Warner Brothers studios, noted Britannica.com. 

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The creative unit boasted a variety of top names in animation, including Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, Bob Clampett, and Friz Freleng, as well as renowned voice artist Mel Blanc and musician Carl Stalling, the same source indicated. 

There had been earlier variations of Bug Bunny, the affable and wisecracking rabbit, who was voiced by Mel Blanc.

Bugs Bunny first made an appearance in the 1938 "Porky’s Hare Hunt," although the character’s speech patterns and look were quite different, Variety reported.  

Over the next few years, Warner Brothers’ Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons featured other cartoon rabbits, multiple sources noted.

But it was in 1940 with the short film "A Wild Hare" that Bugs Bunny looked like himself and sounded like himself — and, significantly, according to Variety, it was the first time he uttered the immortal words, "What’s up, Doc?"

Only Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse rivals Bugs Bunny as the most popular cartoon character of all time, Britannica.com said.  

From time to time, Bugs Bunny appeared with other animated protagonists such as Daffy Duck and Porky Pig, and most frequently his nemeses were Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam, the same source recounted.

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Classic Bugs Bunny cartoons include "Hare Tonic" (1945), "The Big Snooze" (1946), "Hair-Raising Hare" (1946), "Buccaneer Bunny" (1948), "Mississippi Hare" (1949), "Mutiny on the Bunny" (1950), "What’s Up, Doc?" (1950), "The Rabbit of Seville" (1950) and the Oscar-winning "Knighty-Knight Bugs" (1958). 

The animated stand-out "What’s Opera, Doc?" (1957), which featured Bugs and Elmer Fudd in the roles of Brunhild and Siegfried, created a tweaked adaptation of Richard Wagner’s "The Ring of the Nibelung" — acclaimed as the first cartoon short to be inducted into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress in 1992, noted Britannica.com.

In 1987, many decades after his debut, "The Bugs Bunny & Tweety Show" was ABC’s No. 1 kids’ TV show, under the headline "Wabbit Wins Watings Wace," according to Variety.

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Bugs Bunny has garnered other achievements over the years. 

He has appeared in over 150 films, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — and was the first animated character to get his face on a postage stamp.

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TV Guide also ranked him No. 1 atop a list of the 50 greatest cartoon characters, according to Smithsonian Magazine. 

The cartoon trickster also appeared in the feature films "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" (1988), "Space Jam" (1996) starring Michael Jordan, and "Space Jam: A New Legacy" (2021).