Mother’s Day Second-Line Shooting In New Orleans Injures At Least 17 People

English: The USS New Orleans (LPD-18) passes by downtown New Orleans on the Mississippi River (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A Mother’s Day second-line shooting on Frenchmen Street in the 7th Ward, on Sunday about 2 p.m., left about 17 people injured, according to changing NOPD numbers.  Earlier Sunday afternoon NOPD Superintendent Ronald Serpas said that about 12 people had been injured, but NOPD spokeswoman Remi Braden said at about 5:30 p.m. Sunday that the toll had creeped up to 17 people as some victims initially hadn’t reported being injured.

The shooting, in which a girl allegedly was grazed on her side by a bullet, occurred in the 1400 block of Frenchmen Street at the intersection of North Villere Street.  The girl, who was 9 or 10 years old, appears to be in stable condition, Braden said.

“In fact, many of the victims were grazed (some by bullets that ricocheted),” Braden said in an email.  ”At this point, there are no fatalities, and most of the wounds are not life-threatening.

“But all medical conditions are not known at this time as victims were rushed to nearby hospitals,” Braden continued.  ”Detectives are conducting interviews, retrieving any surveillance video in the area and, of course, collecting all evidence.  This is an extremely unusual occurrence, and we’re confident that we will make swift arrests.”

Read more:  http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2013/05/mothers_day_second-line_shooti.html

Pittsburgh Officials Hope Gunshot Detection System Will Aid Police

Locator map with the Homewood South neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania highlighted. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Shirley Wheaton, 73, says gunshots are regular background noise on Rosedale Street in Homewood, where she shares a home with her son, who is disabled.

But when she calls 911 to report it, emergency center operators often ask a question she can’t answer: Where is it coming from?

“Frankly, do you think I’m going outside to see where it’s coming from?” she said. “No one’s going to go outside to see where it’s coming from.”

Ms. Wheaton’s neighborhood will soon become the site of a $1.15 million pilot project to install a surveillance camera and gunshot detection system in a 3 square-mile area centered on Homewood.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/neighborhoods-city/pittsburgh-officials-hope-gunshot-detection-system-will-aid-police-687074/#ixzz2Sv8Buz6K

New Pottstown Police Chief: Use Increased Patrols, Social Media To Fight Crime

Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Editor’s note:  The social media aspect doesn’t really strike me an a great crime fighting tool; however, crime mapping and focused patrols in problem areas are certainly a good start.  We can only hope things move in a positive direction with the police department.  Unless crime can be brought under control, revitalization and economic development cannot happen on a large enough scale to truly have a transformative impact on the Borough of Pottstown.

POTTSTOWN — Even before taking the oath Wednesday night as the borough’s new police chief, Richard Drumheller had some ideas to help make the community safer, even if it means using unconventional tactics.

Drumheller plans on using Facebook and Twitter to create a better connection with residents, increase patrols in high-crime areas and streamline the way police calls are dispatched.

One of the first changes he wants to make as the new chief is creating a department presence on social media as a way to engage with the residents of Pottstown.

He said people want to know what is going on in the borough and he wants to use Facebook and Twitter as a way to keep them informed.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130509/NEWS01/130509292/new-pottstown-police-chief-use-increased-patrols-social-media-to-fight-crime#full_story

Violent Crime Wave Continues With 3 More Shootings, Robberies In Harrisburg

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Within hours of Harrisburg police’s first foot patrol to curb the city’s most recent wave of violent crime, police responded to three more shootings and several robberies.

As of Wednesday afternoon, police had arrested two male teenagers, a 17-year-old and a 14-year-old, as well as a 23-year-old man in connection with the crimes, and additional charges are likely as the investigation continues, city police Chief Pierre Ritter said.

Speaking from the site of the latest foot patrol in the Allison Hill neighborhood Wednesday afternoon, Ritter addressed the department’s need to keep up with criminals, who he said are quick to target areas far away from planned police enforcement zones.

“What we’re seeing happen is, when we make foot patrols in one area, these guys go to another area to commit crime,” Ritter said. “Criminals are becoming more and more mobile.”

Read more:  http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/05/post_562.html#incart_m-rpt-1

Pittsburgh City Council Approves Security Cameras For Homewood

Locator map with the Homewood West neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania highlighted. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After heated discussion, Pittsburgh City Council passed two bills to install surveillance cameras and a gunshot detection system in a three square mile area in Homewood at a cost of $1.15 million.

The bills were sponsored by Councilman Ricky Burgess, who said recent violence in the East End underscores the need for the surveillance cameras and the gunshot detection system, which has the ability to pinpoint the location of gunshots and notify authorities.

Councilman Patrick Dowd and Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak opposed the package of bills.  Ms. Rudiak said she was concerned about how the project was proposed and funded.  The money for the project will come from the 2014 capital budget, banking on the fact the city will likely run a surplus this year.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/neighborhoods-city/pittsburgh-city-council-approves-security-cameras-for-homewood-685652/#ixzz2Rz6U5M4S

Philadelphia’s Homicide Tally Shows Dramatic Drop

English: This is my own work, Public Domain Photograph, not copyrighted Ed Yakovich http://www.flickr.com/photos/10396190@N04 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Editor’s note:  Great news!

PHILLY’S HOMICIDE rate is raising some eyebrows – but this time, it’s for all of the right reasons.

From the start of the year through Wednesday night, 54 homicides were recorded, a 39 percent drop from the same period a year ago, according to police statistics.

Shootings were down 20 percent, from 274 to 218, and overall violent crime fell 9 percent through March 31, the last date for which those figures were available.

For a city that has long been haunted by stubbornly high homicide tallies, the lower figures represent an encouraging sign of progress.

Whether that progress can be maintained through the notoriously violent spring and summer months is anyone’s guess.

Read more:  http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20130405_Philadelphia_s_homicide_tally_shows_dramatic_drop.html

Hazleton Scoured After Police Car Window Shot Out

Downtown Hazleton, PA (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

HAZLETON – Scores of police officers scoured a neighborhood in the Alter Street business district with guns drawn Wednesday morning after the rear window of an unmarked police vehicle “exploded” when it was shot with something while a Hazleton detective sat inside.

City Police Chief Frank DeAndrea said the unnamed detective was not hurt.

He said the unmarked vehicle was parked at Fourth and Alter streets about 11:45 a.m. when the window “exploded as if shot out,” blowing “90 percent” of the glass inside the vehicle.

“It was shot with something. I’m just not sure what caliber, if it was a BB from a passing motorist,” Chief DeAndrea said.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/hazleton-scoured-after-police-car-window-shot-out-1.1451125

Daylight Wilkes-Barre Shooting Shocks

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WILKES-BARRE – One man was hospitalized in serious condition after he was shot in the stomach Thursday afternoon on Coal Street.

The unidentified victim was involved in an argument shortly after noon and dared the shooter, a witness said.

The shooting happened hours after police on an early-morning patrol heard gunshots and found one man dead and another seriously injured with a head wound about a mile away near a bar on Scott Street.

Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis said she could neither confirm nor deny that the shootings were connected.  But she added, “We do not believe these are random acts of violence.”

Read more:  http://www.timesleader.com/stories/Daylight-city-shooting-shocks,253030

Shots Ring In New Year; 2 Killed, 2 Hurt In Reading

A 1947 topographic map of the Reading, Pennsylvania area. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Reading did not see sunlight in 2013 before police were investigating two killings on city streets.

Two men were also wounded in the separate shootings about 80 minutes apart early Tuesday, police said.

Police identified the dead as Luis Medina, 19, of South Third Street and Najeebie Johnson, 34, of Robeson Street.

The killings marked a rough start to a new year in a city that has seen a resurgence in violent crime.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=440251

Two Killed, Two Wounded In New Year’s Shootings In Reading

A 1947 topographic map of the Reading, Pennsylvania area. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Two men were killed and another two were wounded in a series of overnight shootings in Reading, investigators said.

One man was shot to death and another grazed about 3:50 a.m., according to city police Sgt. John M. Solecki.

According to Solecki:

The pair and another man were driving around northeast Reading looking for a club where they were supposed to pick somebody up.  They stopped to ask directions from a man walking in the 900 block of Amity Street who fired several shots into the vehicle, fatally wounding the driver and grazing one of the passengers.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=440178

Woman Decorating Church 1 Of 3 Shooting Victims In Blair County

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Blair County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

HOLLIDAYSBURG, Blair County — A man fatally shot a woman decorating for a children’s Christmas party at a tiny church hall and killed two men elsewhere in a rural central Pennsylvania township Friday before he was fatally shot in a gunfight with state troopers.

The woman had cooked food the day before for the funeral of Juniata Valley Gospel Church’s longtime pastor, said the Rev. James McCaulley, his brother.  The central Pennsylvania church was still reeling Friday from the Rev. David McCaulley’s death when the woman returned to decorate the church hall — named after the pastor of 58 years — and bullets ripped through a window, he said.

The gunman then entered and shot one of two women before he left, the Rev. James McCaulley said.

Blair County District Attorney Richard Consiglio said that there “might be some relation” between at least two of the victims but that they were shot at different places in and around the tiny village in Geeseytown, about 70 miles west of Harrisburg.  The names of the victims and the gunman weren’t immediately released.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-four-dead-pa-shooting-20121221,0,1261339.story

Governor Seen As Key To Reading Crime Summit

Editor’s note:  While you are at it, include Pottstown.  The crime rate is just as bad as Reading!

As Berks County residents digest the latest spate of violence in Reading, retailer Albert R. Boscov has taken center stage in the protracted effort to pull together a crime summit.

Boscov said Wednesday that it was crucial for both federal and state officials – preferably Gov. Tom Corbett – to take part in the proposed group discussion of Reading’s crime problems.  He said both U.S. Sens. Bob Casey Jr. and Pat Toomey have agreed to take part and that he was working to secure Corbett’s participation.

“I think he will come,” Boscov said.

A spokeswoman for Corbett said Wednesday night that he had not been invited to a summit but was open to the concept.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=433457

Harrisburg Shootings Lead To Street Barricade, Shaken Residents

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hours after Harrisburg police barricaded an uptown street for safety, shots rang out throughout the city’s crime-ridden Allison Hill early Saturday, wounding at least two men and leaving residents shaken.

Residents, some awakened by volleys of bullets, found the sound of gunfire all too familiar.

Gunshot victims bled on the streets, one on South 14th and one on Brookwood.

Police cars, their lights flashing “like Christmas trees” as one resident described it, descended on the neighborhoods.

Read more: http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/08/harrisburg_shootings_lead_to_s.html

It’s Shooting Season In Pottstown – Warm Weather Brings Increase In Crime

Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What exactly does it take before the powers that be take Pottstown‘s out of control crime rate seriously and do something about it?  Is this sorry state of affairs the best the citizens and taxpayers of Pottstown can hope for?

Maybe outsourcing the police department needs to be a consideration.  $3 million dollars a year is a great deal of money to spend for a crime rate equal to Philadelphia and Reading!   Hell, hire the PA State Police or the National Guard.  I bet you’d get results then!  How does a 5 square mile borough with slightly more than 22,000 people end up in this condition?  Poor leadership!

Granted, one has to wonder what two people are doing standing in Buttonwood alley at 4am.  We all know Buttonwood Alley is a high incident area so why aren’t we being proactive and doing something to crack down on crime once and for all!?!  SEND A MESSAGE THAT WE WON’T TOLERATE THIS BEHAVIOR IN POTTSTOWN!

Numerous larger cities in Pennsylvania have a lower crime rate than Pottstown, as I have spelled out in earlier posts.  What about surveillance cameras???  What about crime tracking software???  Again, can we say PROACTIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  There are grants out there!

The next Chief of Police needs to be tough on crime.  The current highly paid top cop shrugs his shoulders and blames Pottstown’s crime problem on its location between Reading and Philadelphia.  No other towns along 422 have a crime rate anywhere near Pottstown (except Norristown – like that’s something to aspire to?????)  And why is that?  For $100,000 dollars a year I think the taxpayers of Pottstown should expect certain results and there needs to be accountability from a department head.  Maybe if the people who make these big municipal salaries had to live in Pottstown they might care more about what goes on after 5pm when they take their pay check and leave town!

Here’s the latest news from the Fishwrap about Sunday morning’s double shooting in Buttonwood Alley: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20120415/NEWS01/120419669/update-police-id-mom-and-son-shot-in-pottstown-(video)

The Weather Is Getting Warmer And Problems Are On The Rise In Pottstown’s Core Neighborhood

Now that the weather is warmer and people are involved in more outdoor activities, we are noticing that problems are starting to escalate in the Washington Street Corridor.  The Mercury reported two shootings, in the last week, in that general area as well as a self-inflicted gunshot wound to a third person. 

It appears that noise and loitering are on the rise.  Large groups of people hanging around with nothing in particular to do which is a recipe for disaster.  Idle hands….

It has come to my attention that there is a particular hot spot of activity which needs to be addressed.  If we are serious about cleaning up and stabilizing the core neighborhood through homeownership, we better start putting our money where our mouth is.  The few homeowners in that area are sick of this behavior and are prisoners in their homes.  You will never attract new homeowners with this sort of lawlessness being allowed to go on.  Confronting these people is dangerous and should be handled by law enforcement professionals.

This activity is a black eye for Pottstown and continues to reinforce the stereotype that our community is a ghetto and unsafe.  This is of course not true, but perception is hard to change.  This problem area of town needs immediate and swift attention. 

If we expect PAID to do their job, crime MUST be brought under control.  How is PAID supposed to attract business and industry to Pottstown if this Wild West behavior is tolerated??  Who the hell will invest in Pottstown if we cannot get a handle on criminal activity??  The answer is Section 8 slumlords!

We need to start enforcing the laws we have on the books and being a little more clever.  Again, I suggest cameras for problem areas and beefed up patrols.  If we cannot get the criminal element in this town under control PAID is DOA!

Williamsport: Weeklong Shooting Spree Continues

Image via Wikipedia

Williamsport is having a bad week.  There have been four shootings since Sunday.  Yesterday afternoon shots were fired between two vehicles a few blocks west of Williamsport General Hospital.  One person was wounded and taken to a local hospital.

Sunday night a nonfatal shooting occurred in Memorial Park.  Early Wednesday morning a second nonfatal shooting occurred on West Fourth Street.  Wednesday night a Philadelphia man was killed along High Street.

Police and city officials and trying to come up with a solution for the recent rash of gunfire.  Police say the shootings are not random.

Some demographics on Williamsport courtesy of City-data.com:  2009 population estimate 29,304, land area is 8.88 square miles, number of police officers 53, City-data 2009 crime index was 322.1 (low), 2009 estimated median household income $25,101, 2009 estimate per capita income $16,442 and the unemployment rate as of April 2010 was 10.4%.

The Latest Bloviation From Tom Hylton

Mr. Hylton’s latest “advertorial”, which appears in today’s Pottstown Mercury, would lead us to believe that the most pressing danger to Pottstown residents is car accidents.  Hmmmmm.  I also live in Pottstown Borough but fortunately in a different neighborhood than Mr. Hylton.  Being a resident of this community I also have some insight into what goes on in this burg (although in a more limited capacity than Mr. Hylton, of course).

To think that after the events of the last several weeks, capped off by a historic summit at Invictus Ministries, our greatest threat is car crashes and accidents leads me to wonder if Mr. Hylton lives in Pottstown.  Especially since the events leading up to and after the meeting at Invictus Ministries are in his supposed neighborhood.  Maybe he’s been out-of-town being a keynote speaker?

I do not believe the topic of conversation at Invictus Ministries was car crashes. I could be wrong, but I do not think so.  I had to leave early but from all accounts it was not a topic of concern to residents.

I am certainly not afraid to live here.  I go downtown frequently for events.  After living in and around Pottstown for almost 30 years I am no worse for wear.  However, to say that crime in Pottstown is the same as other towns around us indicates no research was done to support that statement.  Ignoring the current wave of shootings and stabbings is irresponsible.  This problem will not fix itself!

Here is a crime index for selected cities/towns in our area that I researched on City-data.com.  I think the figures speak for themselves.  Car crashes are not included in the crime statistics.  Auto theft, yes.  Auto accidents, no.  Nice try Tom.  A score of 350 – 700 is considered moderate.  Over 700 is considered high.

City	2009
City-data.com Crime Index
US average	319.2
Royersford	242
Spring City	177.9
Birdsboro	135.4
Emmaus	131.1
Pottstown	454.7
Norristown	543.5
Coatesville	567.2
Downingtown	301.5
Easton	303.7
Boyertown	150.4
Reading	547

 

Phoenixville                               167.8 (2008)

What Will It Take To Make Pottstown Safe??

Less than a week after a historic meeting at Invictus Ministries, to address the recent wave of shootings in Pottstown, another shooting occurred Sunday afternoon! 

In broad daylight, a young man was shot after being “dropped off” in Pottstown’s central historic neighborhood.  This youth was evidently from “out of town”.  That raises all kinds of questions and could be another article.

With an admitted “drug war” being waged to control Pottstown, where does this leave us, the residents of Pottstown?  We were told Wednesday, that as citizens, we are not doing enough to aid police.  We need to step it up and report crime when we see it.  Okay, I will admit citizens need to be involved and help the police.  However, this situation seems to be beyond the scope of our own police department so “citizen involvement” at this juncture is fairly dangerous other than anonymous reporting of crime. 

If these “gangs” are willing to shoot someone in broad daylight it tells me they are fairly confident they can get away with it.  They are not afraid of our local law enforcement.  This brazen attitude would suggest we need to enlist additional help.  More preventive measures need to be put in place.  Telling people “if we put more police on the streets we will have to raise your taxes” is not a strategy.  Sorry, that is just lame.  If our taxes can not give us adequate police protection, we need to consider other creative solutions like outsourcing or mergers.  We need to be PROACTIVE, not reactive.

I urge our leadership to think outside the box.  People would be relieved if the State Police or other additional law enforcement professionals were enlisted to supplement our police department until this crisis is over.  What we are doing is not working.  This problem will continue until these criminals get a clear message they are not wanted in Pottstown and their lives will be made a living hell if they come here and ply their trade.  

There is no shame in asking for help!!!  Continuing to blame unarmed and untrained taxpayers is not going to solve this problem!

Other Pottstown blogs have commented on this subject as well:

http://savepottstown.com/2010/11/14-year-old-boy-victim-of-latest-pottstown-shooting/

http://codebluepulse.blogspot.com/2010/11/its-time-to-declare-state-of-emergency.html

http://sanatogapost.com/2010/11/22/reportage-and-commentary-on-sundays-pottstown-shooting/

Pottstonians Turn Out In Large Numbers To Take Back Their Town

A large crowd gathered at Invictus Ministries this evening at 6:30 p.m.  The crowd was so large that the meeting was moved upstairs into the beautiful sanctuary.  The meeting started late because of the venue change.  I can report that Councilors Rhoads, Weand, Toroney, Kirkland, Gibson, Chomnuk were there.  I did not see Councilor Allen but the crowd was large and she may have been there.  Mayor Bonnie Heath, Borough Manager Jason Bobst, Chief Flanders and Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman were all in attendance.  I saw School Board Member Valerie Harris and Pottstown School Superintendent Dr. Reed Lindley as well.  Code Blue members were in attendance.

Channel 69 News from Allentown was present and interviewed a number of people.

Bishop Everett Debnam, Senior Pastor of Invictus Ministries, called the meeting to order and spoke a few inspiring words.  Unfortunately, I had to leave at that point!  If anyone was there and would like to tell more of the story, please leave a comment!  I would be personally interested in hearing how things went!

Here are a few pictures I was able to snap before rushing off.

Pottstown Community Meeting – Escalating Violent Crime In Our Neighborhoods

WHERE:  Invictus Ministries 79 N. Hanover St.

 

WHEN:  Wednesday, November 17th at 6:30 PM

 

WHO:  Chief Flanders – Mayor Bonnie Heath – D.A. Risa Vetri Ferman

 

Okay folks, the borough has heard your cry for help and has arranged this meeting including Montgomery County D.A Risa Vetri Ferman, Chief Flanders, Bonnie Heath and I would suspect some or all Pottstown Councilors.  DA Ferman is a no-nonsense prosecutor and has publicly stated she is all about keeping the citizens of Montgomery County safe!  She has a low tolerance for crime!  We have the county’s attention now and this is a good thing!!!!  We need their help.

 

This is your chance to be heard so SHOW UP and pack the house!