By the time Sheila Watson ends her shift at a local restaurant at 11 p.m., most people are already in bed for the evening.
Still, not a night goes by where she doesn’t worry about the criminal element that can emerge from the darkness, and what can happen as she walks several feet to her car, or even as she drives home to her near Eastside neighborhood.
“From what I see, with all the shootings and robberies on TV, it seems like crime has gotten worse,” Watson said. “Truth be told, I don’t feel altogether safe on any side of town. There’s always the chance of running into somebody who feels entitled to what you worked hard for, or even take your life.”
Local law enforcement statistics show that Watson and other local residents have reasons to be concerned, but also reasons to be hopeful.
From a positive perspective, the city’s crime rate for this summer was better than the previous one, according to the latest preliminary report of crime incidents released by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD).
The rate of violent crimes (homicide, rape, robbery and assault) during IMPD’s final reporting period for this summer (July 29 to Aug. 25) was 6 percent lower than they were for the same period in 2011. Also, the rate of property crimes (burglary, larceny, vehicle theft and arson), was 8 percent lower than last summer.
IMPD’s latest report for the fall season (Sept. 16 to Sept. 22) shows violent crime being reduced by 18 percent, and property crime down by nearly 8 percent.
Kendale Adams, a spokesman for IMPD, said the department, under the leadership of interim chief Rick Hite, took major steps to keep crime from rising over the summer, and pledge to continue those initiatives.
“We have a renewed effort to ensure that we connect with our community through our community affairs section,” Adams said.
Adams said that section of IMPD has been revamped to ensure that officers are following up on homicides and “connecting the dots” to discover common connections between victims and suspects that could be used to prevent future crimes.
“We are going beyond just investigating and closing out cases,” Adams said.
Adams also noted that IMPD has revamped its street crimes and violent crimes units, with officers being divided into teams to go specifically after violent offenders, particularly homicide suspects.
Overall picture
On the other hand, statistics tell a different story when the entire year is taken into account.
IMPD’s report for the year (at press time, covering Jan 1. to Sept. 22), showed an overall three percent increase in crime. Violent crimes are up 8.44 percent and property crimes by 2.74 percent over last year.
The only good news is that when individual crimes are broken down by category, decreases have occurred among homicides (by 15 percent), rapes (by 5 percent) and vehicle thefts (by 11 percent). Crimes that are on the rise include robberies (by 4 percent), aggravated assaults (by 20 percent), burglary and arson.
Some community leaders believe that regardless of what the statistics say, violence is still an urgent problem that must be addressed.
“Clearly, all concerned citizens would concur that just one homicide is one too many in our community,” said Rev. Charles Ellis, pastor of 25th Street Baptist Church and executive director of the Ten Point Coalition, an organization dedicated to reducing violence on city streets.
Ellis said the city is at least making progress in reducing homicides, which he believes is the No. 1 indicator of how safe a city is. Over the past three years, he noted, the homicide rate has been under 100.
“That figure might not mean much without context, however, when one considers the late 1990s when our homicide rate peaked at over 150, under 100 is a relatively good number,” Ellis said. “Moreover, it is even more impressive when compared to cities of similar size like Detroit.”
Still, Ellis said, too many families are being hurt by violent crime, and believes there are several things that can be done in order to make Indianapolis a safer place (see sidebar).
Adams agrees, noting that IMPD still has a lot of work to do in reducing crime overall. He noted, however, that it won’t be successful in its efforts without support from residents.
“Our community resource officers are ready to assist those who want to become involved in crime prevention,” Adams said. “We also have to break the ‘don’t snitch, don’t tell’ barrier, because we cannot solve crimes without good witnesses, physical evidence and people saying they’ve had enough of crime in their community.”
Pastor James Jackson of Fervent Prayer Church said the use of text messaging by law enforcement can help people feel more comfortable providing information.
“It is a powerful tool, and the cities that are using it are seeing a significant reduction in overall crime,” said Jackson, who is also a member of the city’s police merit board.
Despite the decrease in criminal homicides, the overall increase in violent crime keeps IMPD far from becoming complacent. Adams noted that even just one homicide is devastating to everyone involved.
“It is a drain on our community and our police department,” he said. “So I’m not sure if fighting crime this year has been easier or harder. It’s just a job that we have to do and we are committed to doing that.”
To view the latest preliminary crime numbers, visit indy.gov, click on the Public Safety icon, then click on the IMPD icon, scroll down to the “Crime Trend” line, then click on it, and finally, the “2012 Weekly Preliminary Summary.”
Circle City Classic plans
Next weekend, tens of thousands of people are expected to converge downtown to participate in events that are part of Circle City Classic.
What plan does IMPD have to maintain crowd and traffic control, and prevent violent crime?
Typically, IMPD has increased patrols downtown, stationed officers at certain intersections to keep traffic flowing and worked with faith based community groups who have civilians walking on foot to intervene with youth who appear to be “hanging out” out on the streets or roaming aimlessly.
“We have the same plan that has been in place for several years now,” said IMPD spokesman Kendale Adams. “Typically Circle City Classic does not experience any major problems, and we will continue our plan going forward.”
Ten Point’s Tips
On prevent violent crime
• “Get to know your neighbors and those in your neighborhood. Nothing deters crime more than a community that is motivated and involved in what is taking place in the community.
• If you see something “wrong” or know of something going wrong in the community, report it. We must get beyond the idea of not wanting to be a “snitch,” thereby letting crooks and criminals who continue to destroy our community off the hook. We must understand that those who do harm in our community don’t need to be protected but need to be held accountable.
• There is no substitute for parental responsibility and involvement. Know where your kids are, who their friends are, and set parameters for them. Parents must be responsible and set definite and realistic parameters for their youth. Moreover, parents must lead their kids to get a good education and encourage them to wait to have children until they are in a position to take care of them, which reduces their risk of ending up in poverty. One might wonder what this has to do with the issue of violence. However, statistics show that a lack of education and poverty are factors that drive the violence number.
• We must be courageous in the public square and talk with politicians and legislators about tough gun laws. The standard response is “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” And while that is true, the reality is that it is too easy to get a gun in Indianapolis. Tougher gun legislation won’t make the problem go away, but it could help at least stem the tide of crime and hopefully save a few lives. We believe that even a few lives are worth saving.”
District by District
Rates of crime (when compared to last year) appear to vary significantly in IMPD’s five districts. They are as follows:
North District – 5.8 percent increase
East District – 5.2 percent increase
Southeast District – 5.1 percent increase
Southwest District – 0.6 percent reduction
Northwest District – 0.6 percent reduction
Downtown District – 0.7 percent reduction
