WHERE CRIME OCCURS IS NEWSWORTHY—ESPECIALLY WHERE CRIME OCCURS
By LBReport.com
In our opinion, two things shouldn’t go unnoticed concerning the Long Beach Police Department’s Jan. 4 news conference, where it released citywide 2010 crime data that showed significant drops in categories including murder (lowest number since 1971), gang-related murders and gang-related shootings.
The first thing to notice is Police Chief Jim McDonnell’s intellectually honest response to the first question he fielded from a reporter, who sought a breakdown of the lump sums—that is, information on where in Long Beach crime might be increasing or decreasing. Much to his credit, Chief McDonnell gave this unflinching reply:
“Crime overall is down as I mentioned, dramatically. We do have parts of the city [where] certainly the challenge is greater than other parts of the city. We tend to see probably our most challenging spots right in the central city area north of 7th Street to PCH and from the L.A. River across to the Redondo [Avenue] area. We’ve worked very hard on that, working with the communities in those neighborhoods, we’ve been able to have a significant impact there as well. Any part of the city, I would say, people need to feel comfortable coming forward to the Police Department, working with us to be able to make their community safer…”
LBReport.com reported the geographic issue—that is, the different crime levels in different areas of the city—about a week ago. We provided a map and data showing that roughly half of all of Long Beach’s 2010 murders took place in a relatively small area— parts of the 6th and 1st Council districts.
The second point that should be noticed is that some news outlets did not report what the Chief of Police said on the concentration of crime in these areas. Reading their accounts, it was as if Long Beach’s Chief of Police didn’t say what he said, and that the data don’t show what they show.
Jonathan Van Dyke of Gazettes.com was an exception to this pattern of incomplete reporting. His story identifies the 1st and 6th Council district areas that McDonnell described as most challenging.
The breakdown of Long Beach’s crime statistics provides important facts that cut both ways. On one hand, they show that the murder rate for most of the Long Beach is lower—in fact, quite a bit lower—than citywide levels. On the other hand, however, they also reveal that the murder rate in parts of Long Beach—primarily in parts of the 6th and 1st Council districts—is considerably higher than citywide crime data.
The important bottom line: the concentration of crimes being committed in parts of the 6th and 1st Council districts constitute the reason Long Beach’s citywide crime level isn’t even lower.
In our view, the good, decent and hard-working taxpaying residents and families of the 6th and 1st Council districts deserve neighborhoods at least as safe as those in the rest of Long Beach. But that won’t happen unless what they’re experiencing in their neighborhoods is reported.
7 Comments
According to my Public Records Act request, Long Beach has tripled the number of police officers over the past 20 years. During that time, the number of calls reporting crime that were received by police increased 30%. Yet the number of crimes reported by the police has dropped 50% in the last 20 years. How can that be?
More crime being reported to the police. Three times more police. Yet police claim there half the crime there was 20 years ago. Doesn’t it seem possible the police are not reporting all of the crime occuring in Long Beach?
I know from personal experience several of the property crimes I called in to police were never reported because police were supposedly too busy to respond when I called in. Just because a crime was not part of the police statistics does not mean that crime did not occur as the police would have you believe.
The next question you should be wondering about is HOW MANY ARRESTS WERE PROSECUTED? Because a person is arrested does not mean he is prosecuted. A detective (separate from arresting officer) must investigate the case and file criminal charges to either the city prosecutor or district attorney before prosecution will be considered. The number of detectives has reduced significantly as detectives were shifted to the streets as total staffing was reduced over the past three years. Fewer detectives means fewer prosecutions. That means the crooks are arrested and released without charges being filed. That also means the crooks are freed to commit another crime against someone else.
I have personal experience with this. I witnessed and reported a burglary in progress. The police caught the four burlars. According to police, one of the burglars confessed. Yet the burglars were released with no charges files because detectives were overworked. I was told the case was at the bottom of the detectives pile and charges would not be filed unless a federal overtime grant was received.
Think about that the next time your house is burglarized. Think about whether your house would have been burglarized if the cops had done their jobs to keep the crooks of the streets.
Mr. Ruehle is accurate when he infers that what crime the police department documents may well not be representative of all of the crime that actually occurs within its jurisdiction.
But he also infers that this may indicate that the PD is somehow intentionally under-documenting or, perhaps in some cases, even refusing to document crimes that are reported to them. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Not all crimes in the city are reported to the police. The PD cannot document that which is not reported to it. Further, not all reports the PD receives rise to the statutory level of criminal behavior and, so, cannot lawfully be reported as such. Further, not all victims of crime desire that a police report be filed. The PD cannot compel a victim to cooperate and even though most serious crimes are, in fact, deemed to be crimes against the state, lesser offenses require cooperative victims and sometimes victims are somewhat less so.
Mr. Ruehle’s alleged personal experiences notwithstanding, it has been my experience that the police department does its best to provide excellent customer service. There is, and shall always be, room for improvement. But overall I believe LBPD does an excellent job given the constraints it it is required to work within.
Finallly, LBPD has no control whatsoever over which crimes are prosecuted and which are not. The elected city prosecutor makes those decisions in the case of misdemeanors and the elected district attorney makes those decisions in the case of felonies. If Mr. Ruehle is unhappy with the decisions made by these two elected public officials, his time might be more productively spent in registering his complaints with them.
Long Beach Police Officer Greet lies when he claims “LBPD has not control whatsoever over which crimes are prosecuted.” LBPD filing charges is the first required step for prosecution and Greet knows it. There is almost ZERO CHANCE for the “city prosecutor” or “elected district attorney” to prosecute a crime if the LBPD does NOT file charges.
In the examples I gave, LBPD Detectives chose to not file charges. Hence, there was ZERO CHANCE for prosecution. It appears Officer Greet chooses to avoid the point and lie when it doesn’t suit him.
Several of Mr. Ruehle’s comments are inaccurate. I am *not* a Long Beach Police Officer, I am *not* lying, and police employees do not conduct criminal prosecutions. Police employees file reports, investigate allegations of criminal activity and file cases with the city prosecutor or district attorney. Prosecution is the sole province of criminal prosecutors.
The only person avoiding anything here is Mr. Ruehle, who seems intent upon avoiding facts because he seems to be holding a personal grudge.
Let’s let the public decide whether Long Beach Police Officer John Greet is full of BS. First, related to Greet’s claim, “I am not a Long Beach Police Officer,” I have attached a link to a September 2010 article from the Press Telegram indicating Sgt. John Greet was honored for 25 years of service as a Long Beach Police Officer.
http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_16197389
Second, Greet claims I am “inaccurate” when stating the police have a role in prosecuting criminals and police detectives must file charges before prosecution can occur. In fact, Greet stated above, “LBPD has no control whatsoever over which crimes are prosecuted and which are not.” However, later on Greet back tracks and ties to twist what he previously said. Greet’s latest comment now says, “police employees do not conduct criminal prosecutions.” Though true, Greet tries to make it appear as if the police are not involved in the prosecution.
Opposit of Greet, let me be clear. The police arrest the criminal. The police ALSO MUST file charges before the the District Attorney or City Prosecutor can prosecute the crimial. My point was criminals are frequently not prosecuted BECAUSE the police FAIL to file charges. The public can judge whether Greet is full of it.
Mr. Ruehle: I am not a Long Beach Police Officer. You will not be able to present any evidence to indicate that I am because no such evidence exists…because I am not a Long Beach Police Officer.
You originally said: “A detective (separate from arresting officer) must investigate the case and file criminal charges to either the city prosecutor or district attorney before prosecution will be *considered*. (emphasis added)
That, I think is the key to your current error. That’s all the prosecutor is required to do…consider the case that is filed. Declining to prosecute cases that detectives present to them is not an uncommon occurrence for prosecutors. In these cases, no amount of encouragement or pleading on the part of the detectives will dissuade prosecutors from refusing to file these cases. This is why I believe that, ultimately, LBPD has no control whatsoever over which crimes are prosecuted and which are not.
Certainly cases that are not brought to prosecutors in the first place cannot be be prosecuted. But once they are presented, they are prosecuted at the sole discretion of the prosecutors themselves. If a prosecutor declines to do so, a police officer cannot compel him or her to do otherwise.
I hope this clears up the question sufficiently. If not, no further discussion about it is likely to do so.
One final thought Mr. Ruehle, you really should consider the fact that you do not know everything you *think* you know. Your perception and personal experiences, whiule valid, are no more reflective of the sum total of reality than are my own or anyone else’s. The gap between the two affords us all many opportunities to learn new things about our world and the fascinating people in it.
I think most people in our world are deserving of a basic level of respect, civility and consideration. You seem to disagree. That is unfortunate.