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Mt. Hope News
Back-sliding ─ A Disturbing Trend?
Once again a pervasive sense of lawlessness and fear creeps like a dark cloud over Mt. Hope. This month residents again bear witness to young drug-dealers plying their evil trade in broad daylight, as residents also bear witness to increased vandalism and property crimes.
What happened?
Lately, residents cannot drive down Camp Street or it’s side streets without witnessing drug deals, from Pleasant Street, down the Camp Street Corridor, including Billy Taylor Park, and on down Camp Street to Grand View. An unruly crowd, including drug dealers, gathers regularly on the street and sidewalk in front of 94 Pleasant Street, and a smaller but similar activity takes place in front of an abandoned garage on Grand View, just a few feet off of Camp Street.
Billy Taylor Park again figures prominently as a place for drug dealers to wait for drug buyers, for gamblers shooting dice and craps in the Kiddy-Park Playground in broad daylight, and for people who drink quart bottles of hard liquor, leaving their empties for John Wiggins of the Parks Department to pick up every morning. All within shouting distance of the Police Sub-station.
A great number of drug deals took place on Monday and Tuesday August 16th & 17th. Tuesday neighbors compared notes and concurred that they together witnessed almost a dozen drug deals take place, before darkness fell, in and around Billy Taylor Park and on Camp Street. Also noted were a number of people staggering drunk down Camp Street with open containers of liquor in their hands.
A former Community Police Officer told us at a Greater Camp Concerned Citizens meeting that there is often increased drug dealing on the 1st and the 15th of each month when government checks are issued. That begs the question: if this is well known, why isn’t there increased police activity on these days?
For property crimes, residents reported property damage from incidents of eggs and rocks being thrown at their homes on Paddelford and Jenkins Streets, Locust and Cypress Streets. Also reported, ongoing vandalism of fences along Camp Street: if you drive down Camp Street from Cypress to Doyle you can see for yourself the evidence of at least 12 incidents of vandalism resulting in damage to at least 4 picket fences on 4 different properties from vandals who kick, break, and pull pickets off as they walk by.
Emergency Meeting at Police Sub-station
On August 18th a call was put into Maj. Fitzgerald, Community Policing, and he reported no changes in police staffing or patrolling beyond the retirement of Lt. Ziegelmayer as District 8 Sub-station Commander. Foot-patrols still take place in Mt. Hope.
Perhaps the criminal element learned how to work around police patterns, using the hours of police shift changes and using cell phones to circumvent police efforts. If so, the Police Department needs to take the necessary steps to out-maneuver these criminals rendering police efforts more effective.
Later, on August 18th an emergency meeting took place at the District 8 Sub-station between community members and Lt. Kohen, the new District 8, Sub-station Commander, along with 5 of our community policemen, to discuss these concerns. At the meeting we learned that the District 8 Community Police have been working short-handed due to vacations, assignments, and officers being pulled for details like the Dominican Festival. Lt. Kohen listened attentively to citizens concerns and offered a number of proposals that could prove effective. We feel confidant that Lt. Kohen and the men and women under his command remain committed to law enforcement and that with the proper support and resources, can get the job done.
The lesson to be learned (both for us and especially for city officials) is that when police presence wanes criminal elements feel empowered and brazenly take over the streets.
The ordinary citizen is left with high taxes, vandalism, drug dealers, and diminishing property values. What are we paying for with these incredibly high taxes?
We urge City and Police leadership not to cede control of Mt. Hope streets to dealers, vandals, and thugs but to step up their efforts on behalf of the tax paying, law abiding citizens of Mt. Hope. We have come too far as a community to allow any backsliding on these issues.
Police Incident Reports
Residents who are victims of property crimes or who witness drug deals or any criminal activity should take the following steps:
1. Call the police and ask for an officer to come and take your report.
2. Write down the time of your call and the time the officer arrives.
3. Note the officers badge number or name tag – write it down.
4. Ask the officer for an incident report number, and write it down.
These steps are all very important, especially the Incident Report Number. Without the proper documentation, statistically, and for all practical legal purposes, the incident never occurred. With proper documentation a pattern and sequence of illegal activity can lead to more effective police action and more effective community action.
The police must do their job, and we as citizens must do our job. Together we can make a difference.
Progress Report
The Camp Street Corridor Traffic Proposal: A call to Mr. William Bombard, P.E., Acting Traffic Engineer resulted in a promise that the Stop Signs requested for Camp Street at the Jenkins Street intersection will be installed the week ending August 20th. The crosswalks will be added, the old ones re-painted and Yield to Pedestrians signs installed by the end of August, according to Mr. Bombard.
The Parks Department’s Unsightly Mess Beneath the Cypress Street Overpass:
A call to Mr. McMahon, Deputy Superintendent of Parks confirmed that the Park’s Department still plans to repair the fence under the overpass, cut the overgrowth, and clean up the garbage. Keep your eyes on this site and watch for action.
Grills in Billy Taylor Park?
We recently learned that Councilman Jackson put in a request for a permanent grill to be installed in Billy Taylor Park. When this idea first surfaced last summer a petition was circulated and signed by virtually every abutter of Billy Taylor Park opposing the idea for obvious reasons. The idea was canned. Why it resurfaced after such overwhelming opposition is a question for Councilman Jackson. When Lt. Kohen and our Community Police learned of the planned grill at our meeting August 18th, they were visibly stunned, flabbergasted. Most sane citizens believe a park rife with problems like drug dealing, crap shooting, and public drinking would not be a good park in which to place a permanent grill. Our Community Police agree.
Still Haunted!
Sadly, the plague of the drug trade still haunts Mt. Hope and until Mayor Cicilline makes up his mind, and Col. Esserman makes up his mind, and most importantly, we, the good tax-paying citizens of Mt. Hope make up our minds to rid our Mt. Hope neighborhood of the drug trade, Mt. Hope will not be a safe place to live, or work, or to raise children.
Greater Camp Concerned Citizens plans it’s next meeting for mid-September: be there, be aware. For info on joining, meetings, call Irene at 640-8076. John
Posted by JohnTwomey at 03:22 PM | Comments (0)
