Posted on 03/29/2015 7:29:43 AM PDT by SeafoodGumbo
NEW ORLEANS - There will be no more Domino's deliveries in the Lower 9th Ward after dark.
It is one of the changes the pizza company is making after another one of its drivers was murdered in the Lower 9th Ward while on the job, but residents and one city leader say the policy change is a knee-jerk reaction that is singling out their community.
"It just, again, puts a black eye on this community," said Vanessa Gueringer, a life-long resident of the Lower 9th Ward.
Michael Price, a 36-year-old father of three, is the second Domino's delivery driver murdered on the job in the last six months. In September, Richard Yeager was murdered in Mid-City while also delivering pizzas.
In response, Domino's now says it will not deliver to the Lower 9th Ward after dark.
"It marginalizes us and it disenfranchise us from the rest of the city," Gueringer said.
Councilman James Gray, who represents the Lower 9th Ward, agrees. He said the policy change is one driven by emotion and not the facts.
"The facts are this is the first murder in the Lower 9th Ward this year," Gray said. "It's a tragedy what happened to the driver, but incidentally that is the second driver killed this year. The other was killed in Mid-City."
Domino's is also making changes that will impact deliveries citywide. During the robbery, Price was carrying less than $30, which is why the company say it will not take cash during late-night hours.
"Credit cards only after 10 p.m. So, the driver won't be carrying any cash back to the store. As well as curbside delivery where we won't be getting out of vehicles and we'll pass the products through the window and we'll have surveillance in the vehicle," said Domino's Regional Vice President Robert Tedesco.
Residents like Kim Ford, whose nephew works as a Domino's delivery driver, said no worker should have to risk their life to make an honest living. She said Domino's should make changes that keep all of its drivers safe regardless of where they work.
"It's not just the French Quarter and the CBD that have crime issues. We all do," Ford said. "Every time we are singled out, yet we get nothing in return. No resources to help improve the police presence here."
"This was a crime of opportunity, as all of these were all over the city," Gueringer said. "That should be the status quo for every neighborhood."
The total Crimestoppers reward for information that leads to an arrest is now up to $10,000.
Yes, white lives matter, but better: An attack on one white is an attack on all whites.
Pizza delivery robberies fall into a couple of scenarios:
Random car jacking (see the man at a traffic light or stop sign and rob him).
Dialing the number and ordering a delivery driver to come to “your” door.
- The unwise criminal calls the pizza place and requests the driver come to his actual residence and thus is on file when the driver is robbed and killed.
- The scheming criminal calls the pizza place and requests the driver come to A residence (not his own, waiting outside, perhaps)
So background checks on callers or addresses may not work so well. They CAN keep phone numbers on file and do call backs (call backs became a thing when kids would prank an order for 3 or 4 or more pizzas to one address) but I’m sure the residents of the 9th ward would complain still about being singled out “papers please” etc.your
How much more senseless does murder get? Prayers for the poor family.
Dear 9th Ward: If you don’t like the policy, clean up your dayamn neighborhood.
None of my local pizza places will deliver to me because I am on the wrong side of a road even though I’m less than two miles away. They will happily deliver to someplace on the other side of town 5 miles away however. They’re clearly all a bunch of racists.
“Disenfranchise”
“You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
I can’t see how the decision by a private company to protect its employees in any way impedes a citizen’s right to vote.
” but residents and one city leader say the policy change is a knee-jerk reaction that is singling out their community”
We ain’t do nuttin wongs! We also ain’t gonna snitch on who did dis nether! Where’s my pizza, crackah!?
When it gets that bad, you shouldn't be doing business there. But no one at Dominos (or anyone else FTM) has the balls to come out and say it.
You know darn well they're not making any money on that area. But the politicos would probably revoke their business license for the whole city if they refused to send their people in there to be slaughtered.
Time for companies like this to take a real stand and simply pull out of these types of areas.
What is it the lefties always say? "If it saves just one life". But of course it's not worth giving up pizza delivery to save a life.
Response? "Pizza deliveryman lives matter". Paint that on the Dominos' sign.
Until 2 yrs ago we lived in Scenic Hills off Whitney. Just down from the Nike plant. It’s a well kept up neighborhood, racially mixed. Now it’s not safe to walk at night.
Home prices have been stagnate since Frasier became a rat hole for thugs and crime and Sec 8.
Most of Raleigh Springs Mall is empty, a few niche stores are all that is left, it is a eyesore. They rob the Hancock Fabric store frequently. Shop lifting those $50+ dollar irons. Or just plain robbing the till. I am surprised it is still open.
Our Optician retired after his store was robbed 3 times is a short time frame. His business was on Austin Peay just up from the Mall.
Bartlett is starting to go down hill on the Memphis side. County side is better kept.
Or the answer could be as simple as letting drivers have arms while on the clock, something I’m sure that Dominos will not permit. As another poster pointed out, this isn’t a problem, but a business opportunity. Perhaps 9th Ward Armored Pizza Delivery could also accept EBT cards.
And if a Domino’s CEO or higher up actually said that Domino’s would make a fortune because me and everyone else that hates the racist BS would actually order from them to support them.
Create “Safe Pizza Delivery locations” Pick your pie up at The local Police sub-station.
I thought for a moment this was The Onion or Semi-Satire News.
These people have no sense of irony.
Can it get more fair than that?
No need to thank me. These ideas just come to me.
Insufficient. They need a second person in the car, literally "riding shotgun" - and that's the bare minimum.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.