Well, I didn't think I'd be updating this one so soon, but I guess I have to. There are now 8 murders in Orleans Parish on the year, plus one in Jefferson Parish.
Now, the question is what are we going to do about it? This Sunday, there will be a meeting of the Marigny Community Group at 2700 Charters Street starting at 1 PM. Even if you don't live in the Marigny, PLEASE show your support and show up.
Next up will be a march on City Hall next Thursday. Now, I've heard some people already dissing the idea and calling it a waste, but I strongly disagree and here's why:
In the mid-90's, New Orleans was experiencing a crime wave as bad as this city has ever seen. The coup de grace was a horrific murder at the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen. It was the last straw for the citizens of New Orleans. Citizens, both black and white, marched on City Hall. Morial, under severe pressure, gave Pennington Carte Blanche to clean up the NOPD. Officers were given substantial raises. He also instituted CompStat (which I'm trying to replicate in my own improvisational way). Morale amongst the street cops rose. Crime plummeted. Other factors were involved, but the results are undeniable. In 1999, there were only 158 murders. That's fewer than last year with more than double the population.
That's why it's wrong to say it isn't fixable. IT'S BEEN DONE ONCE BEFORE. WE CAN DO IT AGAIN. APATHY TOWARDS CRIME WILL KILL THIS CITY AS SURELY AS THE THUGS RUNNING AROUND WITH AK'S.
3 comments:
I don't suppose you have link to download the .kmz files?
Your Google mashups are great! I do GIS work (crime mapping actually), but I haven't had time to play with Google maps yet.
I'd like you to contact me (I couldn't find your contact information). This needs to go to a higher level while the momentum is there citywide. In particular, one of the demands should be that the NOPD and DA's office supply basic information to the community as soon as it's updated. There's no reason why citizens shouldn't be allowed to know precisely what's happening in their neighborhoods as it happens, and to look back in time to discern emerging patterns. I used to parse the NOLA.com incident reports, but they're highly irregular. The NOPD gets calls for service data at least once a day (unless they've upgraded the 911 system).
I'm schroeder915 at yahoo dot com.
Sometimes, when a game is going to hell, a manager has to take the pitcher out, just to change the mo' even when it might not be the pitcher's *fault*. I think that something similar is needed in public safety in NOLA right now, new energy, somebody fresh who's not bogged down in the status quo. JMHO.
The maps are terrific. Thanks so much.
http://www.dotcalm.blog-city.com
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