Crime bigger threat than unemployment, foreclosures

I wish we had more jobs. I wish there were fewer foreclosures. There are larger forces at play that affect these trends, and we have to take a long-term view in correcting these issues.

Crime, however, though obviously affected by the economic environment, can also be addressed directly with city- and police-driven initiatives. I don’t claim to be an expert in crime prevention or abatement, but I am a resident and home-owner who is concerned about the direction the trendline is heading with regards to break-ins.

Last night at the community room at Park Vista, a large number of residents turned out to hear police chief Jimmy Hughes, city prosecutor Jay Macejko and 3rd-Ward Councilman Jamael Tito Brown talk about crime and whether or not anybody has a grasp of the current situation. The one thing you know going into these meetings is that many people already have their minds made up on that account, and nothing they hear will improve their opinion.

One concern is that we’ve got a bunch of rowdy kids roaming around, hot and pumped up, and the North Side pool–currently the only pool open in the city–can’t handle the demand. One incident that was discussed is a recent night where a number of kids, turned away from the pool due to overcrowding, began to fight and “riot.” Police came to break things up, but the juiced-up pack just moved on to other areas, most likely to continue to wreak havoc.

With great respect to an overtaxed and undermanned police department, I’m less concerned for the purposes of this discussion about the question of whether Borts Pool should be opened to accomodate the demand and more interested in the policing tactics and mindset this incident reveals. Why just tell them to break it up and go elsewhere? Why not find a nearby fire hydrant and soak the kids who are, so to speak, hot and bothered? Wasn’t there some creative solution to the problem?

Then there’s the “Madera Avenue woman,” as the Vindicator calls her in its coverage of the meeting, who “was home sleeping just after midnight one recent Sunday when someone threw an axe through her living room window then pulled her flat-screen television through the window.” I know her and spoke with her on Wednesday. She has a job downtown and is part of the pro-yo scene, yet even she is contemplating leaving Youngstown for, perhaps, Liberty. If we lose someone who believes in what’s going on and is committed to the city’s future, what hope do we have for the population at large?!

It’s scary out there, folks, and there’s something that the Vindicator, notably, didn’t talk about in its article, though it was discussed at the Thursday-night meeting. A number of these break-ins, including one that happened to our next-door neighbors and to friends a few blocks over, occur in the wee hours of the night after Vindicator subscribers suspend their delivery for vacation. The last I heard, the police were starting with questioning the delivery guy, but as of last night they apparently didn’t have anyone in custody. Again, I’m not making a value statement on that; I don’t know what’s involved in pursuing these kinds of cases. I was more piqued by the Vindicator’s omission of its indirect role in these cases on Youngstown’s north side.

What can you do to mitigate your risk of break-in and help your neighborhood? Here are some of the suggestions from the meeting:

• Join or start a block watch
• Turn on or install outside lighting
• Use deadbolt locks
• Get a wireless upgrade to your alarm system (the burglars are cutting phone lines before entering to prevent the alarm company from getting notified, then ripping the alarms out of the walls to silence them)
• Install security doors
• Consider glass block windows for vulnerable areas
• Close blinds and lock windows
• Record serial numbers of commonly stolen items
• Make a book with photos of jewelry and other valuables
• This is not an official recommendation, though residents voiced this: don’t suspend your mail or paper delivery next time you leave town; get a neighbor to look after things for you

Did you go to the meeting? What did you take away from it?

[Edit: 4:00pm] We are getting a new alarm system installed that includes wireless monitoring. I recommend you call Kory Banning at Platinum Protection 989-620-7661.

Also, Youngstown police tip line is 330-744-8989.

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