Violence on the Rise

In a blog posting from several months ago, I mentioned the concerns held by Fraternal Order of Police President, Kris Baumann, about the coming surge in DC violence. It appears that the surge is upon us, as children are being murdered nightly on the streets of DC. Each child that loses his or her life is a piece of DC's future that disappears. The surge in violence saddens me, but also makes me more determined to fix our city.



Last night, I attended the Peaceoholics annual awards benefit. Jauhar Abraham, the CEO and co-founder of the Peaceoholics, who is also a close friend, gave an award to one of the greatest success stories of youth turning their lives around. The infamous Choppa City Girls terrorized Anacostia just last year. The girls were sisters and attended Anacostia High School. Businesses, bus drivers and other students lived in constant fear of attacks by the gang.



One day, the girls were introduced to the Peaceoholics. Through the mentorship offered by Jauhar and other co-founder, Ronald Moten, the girls went from causing violence to preventing it. It was the Peaceoholics that made them realize the futility of their behavior. Jauhar took them under his wing and even brought them to North Carolina to visit various universities and worked closely with the schools to ensure that the girls would be accepted. Now, two of the sisters are attending Shaw University in Raleigh and frequently come back to DC to work side by side with the Peaceoholics to fight violence.



Jauhar and Moe are special people. Our city owes them a debt of gratitude for all the good work that they do every day. The Choppa City Girls are just one of countless Peaceoholics success stories. They are a prime example of a community coming together to save our children. Let's salute them!

Kenny Barnes is a True Hero

Kenny Barnes is an amazing man. He is the President of ROOT, Inc., which stands for Reaching Out to Others Together. This group is dedicated to ending violence in our city and creating peaceful and safe communities. ROOT's mission is to ensure that communities, police, faith- based organizations, media, business and others all need to work together if the violence epidemic is going to be stopped. In a way, this is very similar to Hillary Clinton's "It Takes A Village" theme. His inspiration for ROOT came from a very tragic circumstance.



On September 24th, 2001, his son was brutally murdered in Ward 1. He was shot in cold blood by a 17-year old. While Mr. Barnes was devastated, he was driven to find his son's killer, and worked tirelessly with members of the community to bring the perpetrators to justice. He found witnesses, worked with the police, and followed a trail that ultimately led to an arrest and conviction. None of this would have been possible if Mr. Barnes had not sought out and engaged members from across the community.



This experience led Mr. Barnes to start ROOT. If he could engage the entire community to find a killer, why not engage the same community to prevent violence before it happens? Churches, businesses and others can and should provide mentorship services to youth and offer ways to turn them away from violence. Mr. Barnes has had resounding success with his endeavor and is a true hero to his city.



To improve our lives here in DC, we must all work together. Government must encourage residents to get involved. Residents must hold their government accountable. Non-profit organizations can complement these efforts and help provide services that the government cannot. Teamwork is the only way we will solve our city's ills. Mr. Barnes has proved it.

Holiday Week Fireworks

The spectacular fireworks display at the Washington Monument on July 4th provides a night of family fun and celebration. But all across the city, legal and illegal fireworks are being ignited. From open fields to front porches, crackles can be heard constantly throughout this holiday week. For most, it's all in good fun, but let's remember how dangerous fireworks can really be. I saw a report from Christopher Metzler on the MPD 1D listserve this morning highlighting some disturbing behavior:

For about the last 30 minutes, a group of seven b/m teenagers have been
going up into people's front yards or on their porches, mounting bottle rockets
and shooting them off, running away, and returning three minutes later to do it
again. Also part of the entertainment includes shooting the bottle rockets
at people's houses and cars. I've called 311 a couple of times; no police
have been by as yet.

While this behavior is inexcusable, it's also disconcerting to see that there has been no response by the police. Personally, I debate whether this should actually be a 911 call as opposed to 311. The possible injury/damage that can be caused by these fireworks, as well as the trespassing that is occurring, seems to be pretty serious. It's up to all of us to keep on our police to make sure they enforce the law. It's also up to us to make sure our young people have other activities to do that keeps them from being mischievous.

If anyone has seen anything similar on their blocks, please feel free to post them here.

Gun Control Takes Center Stage in Ward 8

Last weekend, I went to the Ward 8 Democrats debate on gun control. In attendance, were representatives from the city, the NRA, the Brady Center and the Million Mom March DC. It was a spirited debate, but I came away pessimistic about finding a true solution to the problem, at least as far as DC is concerned.



The problem was eloquently summed up by Ladd Everitt in his email following the event. Ladd is from the Million Mom March and was one of the panelists:

I told people in my remarks that I found it sad that we point fingers at each
other and are duped into criticizing DC's gun laws when traffickers from VA, MD
and elsewhere EVERY DAY are channeling illegal guns to our kids and profiting
from the ensuing bloodshed.

Ladd has a great point. Without secure borders, how can our small city really control its own destiny when it comes to keeping guns off the streets? It is so easy to go into a gun store, buy a gun and then sell it in DC, completely undetected. The answer really lies in the strengthening of federal gun laws and also in better enforcement of the laws in MD and VA. Even the strictest gun laws in DC won't prevent gun violence in our city. Nevertheless, DC residents must have the right to determine the gun laws in the District. Gun violence in Washington is just another example of how District residents are affected by the decisions of others.

An Old School Fathers Day

All around the country, fathers and their kids celebrated their unconditional love for each other on Fathers Day. Unfortunately, for many in the District of Columbia, children are without fathers. In some cases, dads are in jail or were murdered. In other cases, they simple choose not to be a part of their kids' lives and upbringing. No matter the reason, Fathers Day should remind us that many youth of this city desperately need our help.


The government cannot create fathers. All the money in the world will not create never-formed or broken bonds. But several groups of courageous and dedicated black men in the District have come together to create organizations that mentor children and steer them away from violence and crime. Yesterday, two such groups, Peaceoholics and Cease Fire, held a special Fathers Day cookout and baseball game for kids whose fathers are not there for them.


The baseball game featured my team, the "new school" Peaceoholics, coached by co-founders Jauhar Abraham and Ronald Motten, against the "old school" Madness, coached by Cease Fire founder Al-Malik Farrakhan. We were sure we were going to win, but at the end of the game, we were beaten by the "old school" brothers 20-0!!! I have never been so surprised, but Al-Malik fielded an amazing team.


Today, I was reminded again of two things:

1) There are great people doing great things in this community, doing everything they can to save and support our youth.

2) Respect our elders. Not only do they have the ability to make a difference in our community, but they are very good at baseball!

Tragedy at Unifest

DC made the news all over the world last Saturday, but this time for a local tragedy. A woman drove 70mph into a crowd of people, injuring 35, including young children. I have been addressing pedestrian safety issues on this blog for a while now, discussing dangerous intersections, enforcement, and ways to protect our residents. Unfortunately, the tragedy at Unifest has highlighted this problem once again. But this time, it has nothing to do with traffic lights, speed bumps or stop signs.



It seems that we are never entirely safe. No matter how much we work at it, tragedies can never be prevented entirely. What happened yesterday reminded me of the elderly man that killed 7 people with his car at a farmers market in Santa Monica, California. Bad things just happen every now and then, and we need to use these events to appreciate the value of human life and to cherish those closest to us.


How can we prevent future tragedies such as what happened at Unifest? Is it better safety barriers? Is it pedestrian vigilance? Is it better mental health care for those that may commit such acts? I would really like to hear ideas from readers today, because I think it's important for us to share our thoughts on this issue. We all go to street festivals in this city, and as summer begins, let's think about how we can make them safer.

Mayor Pledges to Examine Unsafe Streets

Back in April, after the tragic deaths of Crysta Spencer in Ward 6 and Ms. Covington in Ward 7, I asked readers to submit dangerous streets and intersections in their neighborhoods to Disctrict Matters so that I could deliver them directly to the Mayor and DDOT in attempt to prevent further needless pedestrian deaths. The Washington Post published this and I received a list of 24 intersections which residents felt needed some type of traffic control (lights, stop signs, speed bumps, cameras, etc.).

Last week I presented this list to Mayor Fenty at a community meeting on Minnesota Ave. traffic calming. The Mayor promised to look at each intersection on the list and examine them equally, regardless of ward, to see if safety improvements could be made. The dangerous intersections, as submitted by readers, can be found in the comments on my post from April 25th and listed here:

14th ST NW from Ft Stevens
5th Street NW, from Kansas Ave up through to Missouri Ave
100 Block of Chesapeake Street SW
Alabama Avenue and 18th Place SE
Buena Vista Terrance SE
C Street and 10th Street SE
C Street and Kentucky SE
Corcoran and 18th Street NW
E Street and 6th Street SE
K Street, West Virginia, and 11th Streets NE
M Street and 6th Street NW
Madison and 7th Street NW
Military Road and 14th Street NW
Minnesota Avenue and M Street SE
Missouri Ave NW between Georgia Ave and the PG county
line N Street NW between 1st Street NW and NJ Avenue NW
New York Avenue between 9th & North Capitol NW
North Carolina and 13th Street NE
Orleans Place and 6th Street NE
P Street and 5th Street NW
Pennsylvania Avenue and 7th Street NW
Q Street and 19th Street NW
Rhode Island Avenue and 15th NWSouth Carolina Avenue and 7th Street SE

The DC government cannot possibly know every single dangerous street in this city, and when a tragedy occurs, it is often too late. That's why it is so important that we as residents stay involved and let our leaders know when something needs to be fixed. When young Crysta Spencer and Ms. Covington died, it was a failure not only of our government, but of our entire community. We all have to work together to prevent these horrible accidents, so let's keep our feet to the fire, as well as our public officials'.

To Close or Not to Close

The tragic shooting at a popular Southwest Nightclub has ignited calls from residents and local stakeholders for the permanent closure of H2O. Chief Lanier has announced a temporary closure of the club, which I believe is the correct action. Revelers need to see that their behavior has consequences, and a temporary closure sends that message.



I must say, however, that I am still unsure about permanently shutting down the establishment due to this incident. H2O screens and searches patrons before they enter, keeping the club safe inside. It's what happens outside that is the problem. Too much alcohol, combined with ready access to weapons, is a disastrous combination. That's we saw that over the weekend when the assailant went to his car to get a gun and then shot the victim in the head.


I see the event as an issue of enforcement. Adequate police/security presence both inside and outside the club can act as a preventative measure, likely reducing unlawful incidents. Kneejerk reactions are rarely the best solution. The calls to close H2O are understandable, but may just push the problem somewhere else instead of actually preventing violence. Instead of permanently forcing the closure of H2O, let's put the onus on MPD to ensure that the surrounding area is safe and require H2O to increse its own efforts to ensure a safe and fun evening for both customers and local residents.

Alarming Spike in Capitol Hill Robberies

This past weekend saw 15 robberies on Capitol Hill. The number is alarming. As a resident I can't remember a spike like that since my teenage days in the 90's. The weekend crimes included muggings at gunpoint, snatched money from cash registers, and even a couple walking home who were beaten with 2x4's.

As you may have seen on my previous post about youth crime getting ready to increase, the police are unprepared to prevent these incidents. We have seen community policing be effective across the city. Unfortunately there just isn't enough officers on the streets. Police presence will deter crime and the more cops we have out on the street, the safer our neighborhoods will be.

MPD needs both more resources and an overhaul of their booking system so that officers can spend more time on the streets and less time filling out paperwork at their desks. With crime increasing on Capitol Hill and across the city, I plea for help from our leaders. The better you can protect your consituents, the happier we will be and the more vibrant our communities will become.

Public Safety Walks: Enhancing Community Engagement

Yesterday evening, Tommy Wells took residents of PSA 106 on a tour of alleys and other public safety hotspots in our neighborhood. This was the fourth such tour in Ward 6 that the councilmember has conducted, and the turnout was spectacular, perhaps more than 50 people.

Public safety depends on community involvement. Residents must understand the parts of their neighborhood that are at risk for crime and be vigilant to help prevent it. Tommy's walk-throughs enhancing MPD's community policing efforts by ensuring that average citizens participate in public safety initiatives. Police cannot be everywhere, so if neighbors are aware of high-risk areas, they can either avoid them or monitor them closely in order to report suspicious activities.

Involving residents in crime fighting efforts helps everyone. An engaged community deters crime and improves the standard of living for all. Tommy's efforts set the standard for community-wide public safety efforts, and I believe that councilmembers in other wards should use his initiatives as an example to replicate.

Violent Crime in DC - On the Edge of a Cliff

Last week I met with Kris Baumann, the President of the Fraternal Order of Police, to discuss issues of public safety. I came out of the meeting feeling a sense of urgency. It looks as if street crime will get worse before it gets better.

MPD is severely undermanned and burdened with a bureaucracy that forces officers to spend more time at their desks when they should be patrolling the streets. Combine a broken police force with a coming spike in the number of 13-21 year olds, the most likely violent offenders, and a perfect storm is brewing. Our city is not prepared, which is scary.

Nobody wants to return to the days of the crack epidemic when DC was the murder capitol of the nation. But that is where we are heading if we don't fix MPD and don't address our city's changing demographics. We need a combination of more stringent law enforcement together with programs providing greater opportunities for youth. Certain solutions that I propose include:

-Tougher sentences for violent offenders along with in-prison programs to lower the recitivism rate
-Redeployment strategies that ensure the proper number of officers are present in the most high-risk areas
-Reforming the police booking system to reduce time spent on paperwork
-Focus on prevention and rehabilitation to address juvenile crime. Increase collaboration with our community organizations, such as the Peaceoholics, to provide mentoring and mediation to young people.

I would encourage those with additional ideas to prevent the coming spike in violent crime to post here. As a city we are unprepared, and we need to make some serious changes.

Another Pedestrian Death, but This One is Ignored

The reaction by local officials to the death of Crista Marie Spencer has been exemplary. I specifically want to recognize Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells, who rushed to the aid of the child's family and immediately worked to install stop signs to make the intersection safer for all pedestrians. Since joining the City Council, Tommy has been extremely responsive to local residents. I live in Ward 6, and he is doing a phenomenal job.

Now on to today's post. I was reading a comment in DC Watch yesterday from a woman named Trish Chittams who described the tragic vehicle death of a woman named Ms. Covington in another part of the city. While the accident was not a hit and run, it's interesting to note that this accident passed without a mention in the media, a visit from a politician ,or a candlelight vigil. The difference between the death of Ms. Covington and that of Crista Marie Spencer? Read for yourself an example of the "two cities" that make up the District of Columbia:

On Friday, April 13, Ms. Covington was hit while in the crosswalk of
Minnesota Avenue and M Street, SE. The driver stopped. On Saturday, April 21,
Ms. Covington died as a result of the injuries sustained during the accident.
The family mourns, the neighborhood pauses. There are no candlelight vigils, no
curbside memorial. Only orange markings to show that something happened there.
There are no TV cameras, no mayor, no Ward representative, not even an "In
Brief" mention in a newspaper. Two weeks later, there are no stop signs. Two
weeks later, no temporary stop signs, no speed humps. Two weeks later, we have
promises that the situation will be "reviewed," but they can't promise that
action will be taken.

We live in a city divided by the Anacostia River. Ms. Covington's death occurred East of the River, the section of DC with the highest rates of poverty, crime, unemployment and a host of other social issues that need to be addressed. The problem is, these residents are being largely ignored. We as a community need to let our elected officials know that East of the River matters to us. No matter what Ward we live in, we are all Washingtonians. Let's treat each other that way.

We've Lost One Life, Let's Save The Next One

Two days ago, a speeding SUV struck a six-year-old girl named Crysta Marie Spencer on her way to an after-school program on Capitol Hill. This tragic and needless hit-and-run death has grabbed the attention of city residents who are demanding greater traffic enforcement and regulation. Councilmember Wells rightly demanded that a stop sign be placed at the scene of the accident, and one has finally been erected, despite a sluggish response from the city.

While I am happy the stop sign is now in place, I am particularly disturbed that we were too late to save this girl's life. Doesn't it seem as if we too frequently make corrections after a catastrophe has happened, instead of taking preventative action? Might we have known earlier that we needed a stop sign at Sixth and New Orleans NE? Possibly, but it is impossible for our government to know everything.

Seeking out places in our community that could be a danger is really up to us. We are in our neighborhoods every day and are the best guardians of our children. I have a challenge for all residents: If you see locations that you think need a stop sign, a light, a reduced speed limit or any thing else that will enhance public safety and prevent needless injuries or deaths, like the one that happened on Wednesday, contact DDOT, your councilmember or your ANC Commissioner.

Finally, post those locations here for everyone to see. We need to prevent the next tragedy. I will be taking your feedback directly to DDOT and the Mayor.

Community Policing in Action

Many of you know that I am a big proponent of community policing. Increased presence by MPD in our city's neighborhoods acts as a crime deterrent and gives officers and members of the community a chance to interact with each other, thus increasing mutual understanding. I came across a note posted on the 4th police district user group which is a very positive sign:

I was very, very happy to see this evening that officer's from MPD4 stopped
and talked to a group of young adults that were "acting up" and drinking in
public in the neighborhood. While I am sure that the youths were doing nothing
completely illegal (other than open containers!), I was very happy to see our
officers stop and talk to the group, break it up and make their presence known.
Thank you MPD4 officers--this is exactly the type of thing I hope to see occur
more often in our neighborhood! (Posted by Todd on 14th Street)

I want to tip my hat to the officers in 4D for having a positive impact on our community. Law enforcement is not a perfect science, and we know from my post last week about the 911 debacle that bureaucracy can put strains on the system. I believe that the burdensome process of papering, over-reaching internal investigations and the sub-par use of technology all need to be fixed. However, there is no substitute for officers that truly care about the communities in which they patrol. MPD has some of the finest officers in the nation, and despite occasional missteps, we should all be proud to have them.

A Plea to Enforce the Law

Last night, one of my neighbors on Capitol Hill witnessed an absolutely appalling scene. Below is her excerpt from a local Hill listserv:

We were sitting by the window and saw our neighbor coming home from work as
usual. A group of kids were running along side him and they started
punching him and pushed him to the group. Our neighbor is at least 70 years
old! We saw him go after the kids so my husband went out to help and I called
911. The woman who answered the phone couldn't have cared less. When she
asked where they were, I told her that I couldn't see them anymore because
they went after the kids. She told me to call the police when they came
back. I hung up in anger and frustration.

Apparently, the kids followed this elderly man back from Eastern Market taunting him the entire way. Ultimately, he was left cut and bleeding. Despite the call to 911, the police never showed up. 911 operators must take these calls seriously. There is no excuse for this lack of enforcement. We know that MPD is burdened with bureaucratic red tape and paperwork, but citizens need help. To make this city safer, we need to let our officers do their jobs!

Papering Resolution Introduced

Councilmembers Wells and Mendelson today introduced the resolution on the papering of arrests. I wrote about this issue in one of my posts a couple weeks ago. Note in the Examiner article following this entry that the US Attorney seems to have no interest in changing the system. I guess he does not care since he is not accountable to DC residents, only to President Bush. Kudos to Wells and Mendelson for pushing this issue!

Over the next few weeks/months, I am going to be visiting the Citizens Advisory Councils at each police district throughout the city to urge them to write the US Attorney, urging off-hour service for our officers. Our officers at MPD deserve it and our citizens deserve imporoved public safety.

From the Examiner:

Wells, Mendelson call for police booking reform
11 hrs ago - Two District of Columbia council members have called for the reform of the city’s costly police booking system, which requires officers to personally take arrest reports to court each morning after an arrest.

Alleys: Not Just for Cats Anymore

Two years ago, a homeless man seeking refuge from a gunman, ran through my friend Kris's backyard and was shot on her back-doorstep. It seems that there has been an increase in alley crime as the streets themselves appear to become safer. Recently, I have seen an increase in alley crimes, from illegal dumping, prostitution, and open-air drug sales and, in some alleys, gunpoint robberies have increased.

The mayor has made it a priority to provide safe streets to the citizens of the District of Columbia, and in the short months that Mayor Adrian Fenty has been in office I have noticed an increase in police presence on our city streets.

As patrols pick up on our city streets, the alleys offer an inviting opportunity for criminals. As police patrol the chartered streets, criminals look for cover and places to continue their illegal activities. Alleys are the remote areas of our cities that guarantee a flow of people as they access their cars and trash bins. Additionally, they offer law breakers space to store abandoned property and, in one case two weeks ago, they offer a location to dispose of and burn a stolen auto that thiefs have grown tired of, once the gas has been depleted.

Solutions are needed to address blind areas of coverage. Police, as they move forward to advance the work of making city streets safer, may inadvertently shift the crime to other more "personal areas." This is an issue of visibility.

Residents feel a sense of fury and frustration because the best advice given to us all thus far, is to stay out of the alleys. That means stop throwing out our trash and parking our cars. And please forget about that backdoor to your house. Pretend it does not exist.

The city may need to consider extending the eyes of authority by allowing a system where neighbors adjacent to an alley can opt in to a program allowing their alleyway to be monitored electronically. Even if the camera worked or just transmitted HBO, a criminal would think twice before frequenting these areas if they think they are under surveillance.

We need to address this issue immediately. Crime has not been eliminated it has just moved to our back doors.

Death by Paperwork

Did you know that anytime an MPD officer makes an arrest, he/she must spend hours filling out paperwork and then appear in court first thing the next morning to present it to a magistrate? This process is a burden for officers, makes them think twice before making arrests, and forces them to spend less time cruising the streets or walking the beat.

One of my best friends is an MPD officer, and he has given me detailed horror stories of some of DC's finest. In some cases, officers who get off work at 3AM, must sleep in their cars because they need to appear in court at 7:30AM, just a few hours later. DC, which falls under the purview of the US Attorney, is one of the few places in this nation that does not have a judge available 24 hours per day to process arrests.

Because this process is so burdensome, many officers have decided that its easier to release suspects instead of making an arrest. So, not only are officers spending less time on the street, but when they are on the street, they aren't catching criminals. I don't blame our fine officers for this. As a military man myself, I understand how frustrating a bureaucracy can be. The only way to change this is to fix the system.

Unfortunately, the City Council has no ability to make the change because the process is controlled by the federal government. Yet again, another example of DC residents being treated as second-class citizens. Well, I brought this to the citizens tonight via Chair Samantha Nolan and the 2nd District Citizens Advisory Council. Ms. Nolan shares my passion for MPD officers and led a spirited discussion on the issue. The CAC is sending a letter to the US Attorney's office, which is a great first step.

Contact US Attorney Jeffrey Taylor and tell him that you want attorney's available at all hours to receive arrest paperwork. He can be reached at dc.outreach@usdoj.gov. Or here's another keen idea: why don't we give officers computers so they can submit the paperwork online? No matter what the solution, we need a change.