Police at a loss to explain violence spike

[cleodine velvet jackson]

Here's something I noticed: As the crime rate spiked, voter participation and registrations decreased!
With Philadelphia is on it's way to maybe 400 murders by year's end, will the democrats MOST affected by crime come out and vote on Tuesday, November 6th?


http://www.philly.com/philly/news/lo...nce_spike.html

Police at a loss to explain violence spike

By Phillip Lucas & MORGAN ZALOT
Daily News Staff Writers
Posted: Mon, Jun. 18, 2012, 3:00 AM

PHILADELPHIANS looking to the police department for answers to why the city's homicide rate has spiked to the highest level in five years will be disappointed.

Commissioner Charles Ramsey says the department just doesn't know.

Ramsey, his deputies and criminal-justice experts say they're unsure to what they can attribute the 23 percent spike in homicides so far this year, or what can be done to put an end to the killing.

"This isn't, ‘What's the new strategy that's going to somehow turn it around?' " Ramsey said. "Hell, if we knew that, we'd have done it already. We have no interest in allowing a body count to grow."

The homicide count has climbed to its highest level since Ramsey took charge of the department in 2008. Through Sunday, the city had 173 homicides this year. That's 32 more than last year at this time, and only eight fewer than at this time in 2007, the year before Mayor Nutter took office and brought Ramsey to town with a pledge to cut the homicide rate.

Following a particularly bloody January, Nutter outlined nine steps the city would take to crack down.

He pushed for augmenting the lines of communication between cops and communities, began offering $20,000 for tips leading to arrests of homicide suspects, and pledged to increase funding for the city's victim- and witness-services programs.

He also called for the city to strictly enforce two sections of the state crime code that deal with illegal-gun possession. District Attorney Seth Williams pledged to work with the courts to ensure that people arrested for illegally carrying firearms are aggressively prosecuted — which doesn't seem to be happening, Ramsey and Deputy Commissioner Richard Ross said.

According to the department's five-year report, released in August 2011, a gun was used in 88 percent of homicides between 2007 and 2011, and 76 percent of homicide victims had criminal records. The revolving door of criminals arrested and rearrested on weapons charges feeds into the relentless violence.

"Their point is well-taken," said First Assistant District Attorney Edward McCann. "When we sit around and identify the most violent defendants, far too often we see a court history where there were several opportunities to hold them accountable and take them off the streets, and cases get dismissed."

Despite that, McCann said the D.A.'s office has put forth a tremendous effort since 2010 to ensure that criminals arrested on weapons charges are vigorously pursued by the court system.

"It's not like people aren't doing anything. There's a concerted effort on everybody's behalf to fight this, and I'm sure that will continue," he said. "Is it perfect? Absolutely not. There's a lot of work left to do."

The department had confiscated 1,291 guns through June 7, and Ross says police put a major emphasis on confiscating illegal firearms.

"That's what it's about, because absent that, you're always going to be behind the eight ball, because, unfortunately, there are a lot of guns on the street," he said.

The Police Department uses statistics to try to predict violence and deploy personnel accordingly, Ross said.

"We look at our numbers on a daily basis to see where the trends are, where the hot spots are, where the retaliation appears to be occurring," he said. "Then what we do is we strategically deploy our people — en masse, when we can — and we use a myriad of ways to do that.

“We have foot beats that we lay down in areas, we have strategic and tactical units that get out, like Highway Patrol and Narcotics Strike Force, as well as our district tactical people, and we typically lay out grids that correspond to shootings and homicides and other violence."

But when a shooting does happen — as it has nearly every seven hours on average this year — Ramsey said it's hard to get any information from victims.

"They refuse to provide you with information — and they just got shot, and they know who shot them in many instances," Ramsey said. "It just becomes a vicious cycle that takes place on the street." n

[cleodine velvet jackson]

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20...unt=3#comments

Community desensitized to violence that has torn up neighborhoods

By Morgan Zalot
Daily News Staff Writer
Posted: Tue, Jun. 19, 2012, 7:00 AM

ON A WARM spring night, a boy no older than 5 sauntered onto his parents' porch about 10 p.m. as cops swarmed the family's Grays Ferry block, investigating a quadruple shooting that left a young man dead and three other people, including a pregnant woman, injured.

Before being hushed by his parents, the boy peeked over the wrought-iron fence and formed a gun with his tiny thumb and forefinger, already much too aware of the violent city around him.

"I heard the gunshots," the boy said, motioning as if he were firing a handgun. "It was like, ‘Bang, bang, bang.' "

In addition to that May 22 killing of 24-year-old Adib Smith on Etting Street near Dickinson, the neighborhood has been the scene of two other homicides this year and shootings that wounded seven people.

The violence reflects a spike in homicides and shootings in Philadelphia this year, leaving communities feeling vulnerable and afraid, wondering when the next bullets will fly.

About three blocks from where Smith was gunned down, Clarice Douglas, 45, a mother of three, was killed when she was hit in the head by a stray bullet April 20, trying to get to her porch to seek refuge from a shootout between two men running along Corlies Street near Dickinson.

Hakeem Burley, 23, was wounded in the shootout in which he allegedly was involved with Shekinah Williams, 28. Burley was arrested, but Williams remains at-large.

About five blocks away on March 24, Damon Stafford, 21, was shot dead inside Twin Dragon, a Chinese takeout at 27th and Dickinson streets.

Police say the violence in neighborhoods has become so commonplace that many residents have mentally checked out, too desensitized to take an effective stand against the people who turn their communities into war zones and force their children to learn to duck at the sound of gunfire before they've even started school.

"We've morphed into a society where it's acceptable, almost, that gunshots go off, and you have your short-term bits of outrage and dismay, but ultimately you go about your business," Deputy Commissioner Richard Ross said.

David Kennedy, director of the Center for Crime Prevention and Control at New York's John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said one reason for gun violence is the mentality among many young men growing up in poverty-stricken, violence-choked neighborhoods that their days are numbered.

"Young men talk about not expecting to live past 25, and it shapes their behavior in all kinds of damaging ways," Kennedy said.

He added that it's virtually impossible to predict when violence will erupt.

"Things may be quiet today, but they can heat up for almost any reason tomorrow, and you can have a flurry of shootings back and forth between these two groups where it looks like the sky is falling," he said. "And in a very real way, it is."

Kennedy said that research in Chicago — a city that had a 60 percent uptick in homicides from January to April 2012 compared with the same period last year — has shown that the risk for neighbors who aren't involved in crime being killed is about the same as that of people who live in nonviolent communities.

But the peaceful people in bullet-torn communities feel as if they're held hostage by the bloodshed.

"People are afraid to go outside. Parents are afraid to send their sons out in the morning," Kennedy said. "They don't know whether they'll come home at night." n

Clarice Douglas.jpg

[JMJ]

Chicago is up 35% over 2011, but they have a "long-term" plan.

I wonder if that includes resurrecting all that get shot down until they get their shit together?......JMJ

[Mr.I]

I think the economy has a lot to do with it... give cats decent paying jobs so they're too busy working to be out killing each other! An idle mind is a dangerous thing

[JMJ]

I think the economy has a lot to do with it... give cats decent paying jobs so they're too busy working to be out killing each other! An idle mind is a dangerous thing

Give?.....JMJ

[Mr.I]

Give?.....JMJ

"Create"

[cleodine velvet jackson]

I think the economy has a lot to do with it... give cats decent paying jobs so they're too busy working to be out killing each other! An idle mind is a dangerous thing

Even if they are "given" jobs, the majority would fail the drug tests!

Also, I don't believe it's just about money because many of these thugs drive nice cars, buy new sneakers and tattoos every 2 weeks, go to the clubs on the weekends, etc. Here's the problem: They have a strong and warped sense of entitlement and are extremely territorial! Just crossing the street can get a black male KILLED because those living on the other side have claimed it as theirs and most of them DON'T HAVE A POT TO PISS IN OR A WINDOW TO THROW IT OUT!!!

Lastly, many of the so-called leaders in those communities are ex-cons and rule with iron fists. How the hell is it possible a man convicted of rape runs a recreation center for children? How is it possible said ex-con allows drug dealings to take place on the recreation center's property? And, this happens throughout Philadelphia!

[cleodine velvet jackson]

And the police commissioner, mayor, elected officials and others are baffled about high crime, especially in the 17th Police Precinct (where the murders in the first story posted in this thread occurred)?

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20...eroin.html?c=r

Philly cop charged with selling heroin

By Michael Hinkelman
Daily News Staff Writer
Posted: Wed, Jun. 20, 2012, 2:33 PM

A 23-year-old Philadelphia police officer was charged Wednesday with selling heroin to a confidential informant working for the FBI.

Jonathan Garcia, who has been on the force for three years and is stationed in South Philly's 17th district, was charged with four counts of distribution of heroin and two counts of carrying a firearm during drug trafficking.

Garcia, who was arrested at his home Tuesday night, pleaded not guilty Wednesday in his arraignment before federal Magistrate Timothy Rice. He is being held at the Federal Detention Center in Center City pending his bail hearing on Friday.

Commissioner Charles Ramsey will suspend Garcia for 30 days with the intent to dismiss, the police department announced Wednesday afternoon.

"He's never been accused of any crime before this. There's no allegation of any violence," said his defense attorney, Scott DiClaudio. "He's not a threat to the community or a flight risk. We're going to seek his release on bail or house arrest."

Garcia allegedly sold a bundle with 14-individual wrapped packets of heroin to a confidential source on two separate occasions in May and June, according to the arrest affidavit.

In the first incident, the confidential source reportedly attempted to sell the heroin to someone, who said that the quality was bad. The source returned the drugs to Garcia, according to affidavit.

In the second incident, Garcia allegedly sold the confidential source two bundles of heroin stamped "Pussy Cat."

[JMJ]

"Create"

When a city the size of Chicago claims they're broke, how do you create jobs? Where does the money come from and how do you justify the need?

When a gang's main source of revenue is drug money, how much money would it take to get one of these kids off the street?

$8.25/hr punching a time clock?

I don't see it happening......JMJ

[kara]

I think the economy has a lot to do with it... give cats decent paying jobs so they're too busy working to be out killing each other! An idle mind is a dangerous thing

Economy has everything to do with it. We're getting study after study and report after report about "family violence rising sharply as economy declines"

[cleodine velvet jackson]

Economy has everything to do with it. We're getting study after study and report after report about "family violence rising sharply as economy declines"

Please post some of the studies. Thank you.

[Mike Barnes]

Cleodine, Are they're any remnants of the Junior Black Mafia from the 80's, In Philadephia these days(Those cats we're very popular during the 80's and 90's in Philadelphia and nowdays, With so many negetive elements being remade via cats coming home from Upnorth, I thought i'd ask you about those cats, Along with The Sons of Malcolm X drug dealing crew out of Camden,New Jersey during the early to mid 90's).

Much Respect
Mike Barnes

[DeesKo]

Economy has everything to do with it. We're getting study after study and report after report about "family violence rising sharply as economy declines"

IMO, you're talking about two VASTLY different subsets of people here, and quite frankly, I don't buy the argument about the economic dive of 2007 being such a big driving force behind the rise in violence in the communities/circumstances Cleo is talking about. This violence is the result of a much longer, much more devastating process of devaluation & isolation.

Economy driving this spike in violence requires one to be actively engaged in the traditional economy to begin with, and being adversely effected by it via losing jobs, losing homes et al. and the impact of that stressing you to the point of breaking/snapping and doing something out of the ordinary. This can easily explain surges in domestic violence. As families struggle with tough circumstances, their coping skills or ability to work together fades, the fights become more intense, the searing comments digging deeper & holding more venom and WHAM! someone gets a fist to the mouth.

The kids & circumstances Cleo is talking about aren't part of that demographic. They don't own homes, they aren't stressed over losing their job @ Northrupp Grumman and freaking out about their mortgage & student loans and it's certainly not an isolated situation. This isn't an isolated break because of the stress of an economy collapse in 2007, this is decades and decades of institutionalized malaise, isolation and human devaluation.

Just my opinion.

Peace

[sammyrock]

This is the result that the hidden agenda want period.Truly sad and frustrating situation.

[Mr.I]

IMO, you're talking about two VASTLY different subsets of people here, and quite frankly, I don't buy the argument about the economic dive of 2007 being such a big driving force behind the rise in violence in the communities/circumstances Cleo is talking about. This violence is the result of a much longer, much more devastating process of devaluation & isolation.

Economy driving this spike in violence requires one to be actively engaged in the traditional economy to begin with, and being adversely effected by it via losing jobs, losing homes et al. and the impact of that stressing you to the point of breaking/snapping and doing something out of the ordinary. This can easily explain surges in domestic violence. As families struggle with tough circumstances, their coping skills or ability to work together fades, the fights become more intense, the searing comments digging deeper & holding more venom and WHAM! someone gets a fist to the mouth.

The kids & circumstances Cleo is talking about aren't part of that demographic. They don't own homes, they aren't stressed over losing their job @ Northrupp Grumman and freaking out about their mortgage & student loans and it's certainly not an isolated situation. This isn't an isolated break because of the stress of an economy collapse in 2007, this is decades and decades of institutionalized malaise, isolation and human devaluation.

Just my opinion.

Peace

good points

[Detroitbootybass]

Besides economic factors, the unusually mild winter creates more opportunities for people to have confrontations outside of their homes.