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VIDEO: Senate Candidates on Crime

By Antonio D. French

Filed Wednesday, May 31, 2006 at 8:48 AM

At last night's Tilles Park Neighborhood Association candidate forum, Stacey Williams, a south St. Louis City resident, asked the 4th District State Senate candidates about the issue of crime.

"There are parts of this city that I know that even St. Louis policemen wouldn't dare be going in to," said Williams. "Good question, good question," someone in the audience shouted.

Derio Gambaro touted his support by the Fraternal Order of Police (the white police officers' union) as proof of his support for law and order issues. Jeff Smith said he didn't get the police endorsement because he opposed allowing cops to move out of the city.

Amber Boykins said that as a state rep, she has worked with Chief Joe Mokwa and Mayor Francis Slay on getting more officers patrolling those high-crime areas that Williams was probably talking about.

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9 Comments:

Blogger Doug Duckworth said...

Smith is right. We need police living in the neighborhoods which they patrol. Police need to have a connection with the citizens they protect, regardless of race or cardinal location. Instead of taking violence to the streets, they should trust the police. If police move out of the city, any trust which could exist is gone, because formal interaction cannot be made on a day-to-day basis.

5/31/2006 10:02 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Police need to live outside the city to do a better job. when police live in areas they work, the criminals have a higher rate of seeing them off work and with their families in the store or outside. officers fear this and are not as hard as they would be on some criminals.

5/31/2006 11:18 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

boykins has been in office about 4 years and 50ft outside of her office in any direction is about every drug you could ever want to by. Dont believe me, take a trip over their. Im not buying her on cleaning up crime, drugs, gangs, protecting neighborhoods, etc.

5/31/2006 11:21 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

the 60th has got'n worse. what the hell is she talking about/

5/31/2006 11:29 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

There is a huge gang growing in boykins area, right outside of her office thats called the s.l.a.b. (shreve, lee, anderson, bessie) large area and large gang, There head quaters is on shreve between lee and penrose, non of us neighbors like it and are shocked boykins would say shes dont anything to try and clean this mess up.

5/31/2006 11:42 AM

 
Blogger Travis Reems said...

More important than the reason Jeff Smith didn't get an endorsement is what he said bout needing to return to a police force that is of the community. Beat cops are far more effective when they are enabled and supported to get to know those in the community--the residents, the business owners, those who belongs in the neighborhood, and those who are the trouble makers.

Returning to this form of community policing is the best form of crime prevention, that goes beyond crime solving. Law enforcement through prevention rather than through detection.

6/01/2006 1:53 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Let's all stay anonymous and gripe and complain and try to attack State Representative Amber Boykins together! However, you all are full of bull and the El-Amin campaign is obviously trying to find a reason to attack Representative Boykins because of Rep. El-Amin's failure to show up to this debate! I doubt that the people hosting this debate would have barred Rep. El-Amin from participating if she had showed up, but there are definitely enough killings in the area where Rep. El-Amin lives. This was made clear by the Saint Louis Post Dispatch, and it looks like the area may stay that way for awhile!

Teen getting off bus is shot dead
By Heather Ratcliffe and Joel Currier
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
05/05/2006

St. Louis police officers collect evidence at a shooting at Emerson and Lillian avenues.
(HUY RICHARD MACH/P-D)

ST. LOUIS

Several gunmen opened fire at passengers exiting a Metro bus in St. Louis on Friday, killing one teenager and wounding three other people, police reported.

The attack happened about 2:40 p.m. at the intersection of Lillian and Emerson avenues. Police said a 17-year-old boy was shot to death.

Two 16-year-old boys suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds. The bus driver was also injured by flying glass, police said.

St. Louis Police Chief Joseph Mokwa said one or all of the victims were getting off the bus when the shots were fired. Police were unclear whom the shooters were targeting. The bus driver continued to a nearby police station. The bus had several bullet holes in it, Mokwa said.

Mokwa said the neighborhood, just north of Interstate 70 near Union Boulevard, has been the scene of gang-related violence between groups of young men recently.

At least one of the teenagers was returning home from school on the bus. All the victims live in the neighborhood. Police said they found a backpack on the scene that contained several boxes of bullets. They seized the pack as evidence.

Officers also handcuffed and took away several young men from the scene. Authorities said they were witnesses. Police did not identify the victims Friday night and had no suspects in custody.

'KILLING AFTER KILLING'

Alderman Charles Quincy Troupe, 1st Ward, said the history of violent crime in the Walnut Park-Mark Twain neighborhood is a product of a "caustic environment" that breeds widespread illegal drugs and guns fueled by an influx of ex-convicts who return to resume lives of crime.

"We've had killing after killing over here for a long time," Troupe said. "It's more than just the kids killing themselves. The environment is killing them ... they don't think they're going to live past 21 years old. They don't feel like they have a future, so they don't have anything to live for."

Part of the problem, he said, is what he called "reactive policing" that fails to eradicate gang-related violence. "The Police Department is oblivious to proactive policing in the north side," he said. "And the people they are policing are oblivious to themselves."

Troupe said he plans to meet with Sen. Jim Talent next week to discuss securing money for building community centers aimed at providing teenagers in the neighborhood alternatives to gangs.

"The kids have nothing to do," he said. "They have no place to go."

6/01/2006 8:55 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How can someone say they are a "strong voice" for a "stronger community" when the children in the community they represent according to the Alderman are being killed by their environment! In addition, where was that "strong voice" for a "stronger community" when her husband owed that back child support to his children by a different woman. They could have really used that "strong voice" then, and the only person that received that "strong voice" was Mike Owens for bringing up the topic! That "strong voice" was used to call Mike Owens supervisor to try and stop the story! The 1st Ward could have really used that "strong voice" to clean up the neighborhood and stop crime, instead we received a "strong voice" when you appointed your husband the Committeeman of the 1st Ward against the wishes of Alderman Troupe, and the residents of the 1st Ward. The 1st Ward is going to show the El-Amins what a "strong voice" is on August 8th, when we reject you and your husband, like you rejected our choice for Committeeman! Take your "weak voice" somewhere else because the 1st Ward doesn't want the El-Amins or your toxic style of leadership that has lead to a "weaker community"!

6/01/2006 8:57 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

WHAT HAS BOYKINS DONE FOR THE 60TH DISTRICT SINCE SHE HAS BEEN IN OFFICE AND SHOW ME PROOF THAT CRIME HAS DROPPED!!!!

6/01/2006 10:29 PM

 

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