Two days after a new rash of homicides in the city’s black community, new Police Chief Frank Limon spoke publicly about the root of the violence: not gang warfare, but personal disputes often involving ex-cons.
Limon and Mayor John DeStefano updated the public on the killing spree and his department’s planned responses at a City Hall press conference Monday afternoon.
Limon also said why he waited two days to address the public and the press after the third homicide in three days, the fifth in eight days, and the 11th so far in 2010.
“I work behind the scenes,” Limon said, sparking pleas from black leaders to make himself and his cops more visible in the community. (Click on the play arrow to the above video to watch highlights.)
The chief and the mayor crunched the numbers and reported some startling statistics at Monday’s press conference: New Haven had no homicides between last March and October; now suddenly it has had 17 since October.
And while murders have spiked, shootings have actually dropped. Year to date, non-fatal shootings in 2010 are down 26 percent from 2009.
Also, the ages of the victims have in generally risen from past years. For instance, the man found dead inside a trash can in Newhallville last week, Jerry Atkins, was 59. Some 70 percent of the victims were over 20.
And while 10 of the homicides involved gang members, only two of the 17 homicides themselves have been determined to involve gang disputes.
“This is not gang war we are seeing,” Limon said. “Individuals are using firearms to settle personal conflicts.”
All the victims have been black.
Five of the victims were on parole; 13 of the victims, or 76 percent, were convicted felons.
That, according to DeStefano, is an important root of the challenge facing the city amid the wave of violence: finding ways to deal with the estimated 25 people who return to the community from jail each week, and incorporate them productively back into New Haven life. He vowed to “redouble our effort to ease reentry.”
Limon stressed another statistic: 14 of the 17 homicides occurred in “The Corridor”: a swath of New Haven running through Dixwell and Newhallville, through the Kinsington/Dwight/“Tre” and West River neighborhoods, into the Hill.
In his first week on the job (last week), Limon launched “Operation Corridor” there to respond to the uptick in homicides. Last Friday and Saturday nights “saturation patrols” made motor vehicle stops, interviewed people congregating on the street, served warrants in hot spots along that swath from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m.
Looking forward, the department will continue that operation and will work on engaging the community more so people will provide the police with more information, so they can solve more of the shootings, Limon said. The department has made no arrests yet in this year’s homicides, but officials said they have suspects in a number of them.
Paul Bass Photo
At the press conference, Limon heard from community members like retired Wexler/Grant Principal Jeffie Frazier (pictured) that they want a closer, visible connection to the police.
Those exchanges followed Limon’s response to a question about why he waited two days to hold a press conference and speak out publicly about the latest rash of killings.
“I worked seven days straight,” Limon said. “I was very active behind the scenes. My approach in terms of being the police chief is I work behind the scenes to deploy resources out there. The media person will release a statement … That’s the way how I work.”
“The chief is behind the scenes, but this is on the scene now,” declared Frazier, who said one of the most recent victims was a former student of hers who had been “making progress.”
“We want on-the-scene action,” Frazier said. “If you’re working behind the scenes, I want to work with you behind the scenes. Otherwise, come on the scene and let’s work together.”
Newhallville Alderwoman Alfreda Edwards urged the chief to make beat cops more visible, too. She said that she misses having beat cops “on the corner” who get to know neighbors. The disappearance of those foot patrols is part of the reason people haven’t cooperated more with police, she argued — because they don’t know the police as well. Edwards said two of the homicides over the past six months have occurred on her block.
Observations from this article and clip. The new chief appears to be a tad bit defensive. And only after a week. Working 7 days straight is not extraordinary but should be the rule for the highest ranking law enforcement official in the city especially in the week of violence. Working behind the scenes is for the chiefs command staff, the chief has a obligation to in front and keep the residents informed. A closed door policy is not what is needed for someone in charge and not at all familiar with the working of his department or for the city that employs him.