Posted on 11/10/2006 9:36:58 AM PST by BurbankKarl
Responding to calls for more police officers to contain San Fernando Valley's spike in gang violence, LAPD Chief William Bratton said Thursday that he "can't manufacture cops" and the Valley would have to make do with those it has.
With extra cops already deployed to the Valley to confront an increase in robberies, including a rash of holdups at local restaurants, the Los Angeles Police Department can spare no more, Bratton said.
"I only have so many officers to go around," Bratton said. "I can't manufacture cops."
City Councilman Dennis Zine, who represents the West Valley, said the Valley needs more officers to quell the gang violence, and assigning them should be as high a priority for the city as cleaning up Skid Row and patrolling other parts of town.
"If they can put 50 officers on Skid Row for drug dealing and other crimes, then they can address these serious crimes with other officers in a community where people are in fear," he said. Enjoying an 8 percent drop overall in crime from last year, Los Angeles still has pockets of resistance that are bucking the downward trend, including some Valley neighborhoods scarred by gang violence.
Some local neighborhoods have seen a 50 percent increase this year in gang crime, the largest contributor to Valley killings. So far this year, 37 of the Valley's 72 homicides have been gang-related. Last year at this time, 28 of 65 homicides were gang-related.
With a growing Valley demographic group 14 to 20 years old, gangs have found fertile ground to beef up their ranks, said Deputy Chief Michel Moore, the Valley's top cop. And for those young recruits, violence is the ticket to gang stardom.
"It really is a rite of passage," Moore said. "It shows you how warped their minds are - that they would put in this `work,' such as shooting people in the street, committing crimes against people for no other reason than they want to belong to a gang."
There's also concern that gang members being released from prison could try to reorganize, leading to more violence, Moore said.
But even as gang violence increases in the Valley - which represents one-third of L.A.'s population - it accounts for only about one-fifth of the city's gang crime, Moore said.
"I think there are safe places in the Valley - many more safe places than dangerous ones," Moore said.
Throughout L.A. last year, there were 486 homicides, of which 249 were gang-related. Downtown and South Los Angeles - making up about 25 percent of the city's population - account for nearly 75 percent of all gang crime, officials said.
So far this year, more than half of L.A's killings again have been gang-related. Citywide, there have been 408 homicides - 227 of them gang-related.
And the surge of Valley violence at the hands of young and old gang members has alarmed Zine, who has asked for a meeting with gang leaders and gang-intervention groups.
"We need to say, `OK, this is the problem; you're creating death and violence in the community. We need to come to a solution,"' Zine said.
With more police slowly coming in - the LAPD aims to add 1,000 more officers to the 9,000 it has now, but the move is expected to take at least five years - officials are also looking to local youth-oriented organizations to step in and help drive down crime.
Last month, Moore, Zine and other local officials met with youth groups, nonprofit agencies and faith-based organizations in Canoga Park to start building a community-based coalition to address violence and provide alternatives to joining gangs.
A four-day concert and anti-gang event kicked off Thursday at Pierce College. And activities designed to help youths find options, other than joining gangs, will resume Nov. 18 with a community cleanup in five of the city's most blighted areas. The efforts are backed by 107 churches and other civic organizations.
"We feel this will give kids vision for the neighborhoods instead of contributing to the destruction of their community," said Jeff Fischer, pastor of Hope Chapel in Winnetka and organizer of anti-gang events. "They will be able to feel what it's like to contribute life instead of death to that community."
Several hundred teenagers from all over Los Angeles showed up for the concert Thursday night. While many came for the music, others were keenly aware of the need to push the message of nonviolence and cooperation.
"We're heading toward dark times. Gangs have enhanced. Teen suicide has increased," said Roman Bonilla, 18, of Winnetka. "What we're doing is starting up a peace movement. If we don't, who will?"
http://www.csun.edu/sfverc/censusdata.htm
All kinds of great data here.... 25% of LA is illegal.
I'm thinking that it's very easy to combat gangs, drug-dealing, and all the rest.
You simply get into an old car, and start driving around slowly while a passenger runs a video camera. After 2-3 passes, the drug dealers close up shop, the ho's go away, and the word is definitely out.
On several occasions, I've "confronted" local kids that I knew were dealing drugs. I told them that I'd heard that (gasp!) drugs were being sold, and asked them if they knew anything about that. They always said "no", started calling me "sir" (a dead giveaway of guilt), and we agreed that they'd call me if they heard of anything. It always took care of the problem.
The key here is that the neigbors allow it, usually because it's their kids (and tenants!) doing the bad stuff. I've seen dozens of cases, some locally, where the residents fight the cops in everything they do, then have the gall to b*tch about the violence. Go figure.
Most of the valley was white middle class in the 80s. The population was about 3.5 million. The crime rate was low. It was a pretty good place to live. Today it's morphed to a considerable hispanic populace. One can only surmise if they are legal or not. The crime rate is high. The signage often in Spanish.
I made the mistake of visiting a well known name brand store on Van Nuys Boulevard at Roscoe about eighteen months ago. It was about 6:00 p.m. Inside the signs were all in large letters, Spanish. Under that there was a small print English translation. It was a culture shock to be sure.
Van Nuys boulevard looks like a foreign country these days. A lot of the businesses have gone down hill.
I was warned later on not to go to that area after dark. It seems there's a very large gang presence and you're sticking your neck on the line if you do.
This is what the supporters of open borders on this forum are supporting for your area in the near future.
Oh excuse me, nobody here wants open borders. Just don't suggest a way to close them. "Those are all problematic."
Did you see that article about a year ago, where something like 50% of the male working age populace in Los Angeles couldn't read or write eighth grade level English.
I forget the exact particulars, but it was a very sad commentary.
http://dailynews.com/homicides
Here is an interactive map of the homocides. Doesnt include yesterday's.
There are many burglaries in the South Valley because there is stuff to steal and the laborers from the North Valley have a chance to case the neighborhoods while they are working on projects in the South.
Violence is predominately in the North and North East Valley where there the population is mostly Latino. There is the occasional shooting in the South. I'm not sure the shooters live there, but they are there for school (bussed in from the city) or other purposes.
There is a gang of robbers that probably come in from the city that hit restaurants along Ventura Bl, often taking not just the cash from the register, but robbing the patrons of their cash and jewelry.
LOL, I'm not sure where you're employing those tactics, but if it's in the Los Angeles area, I'd suggest you think twice about what you're doing.
Gangs out here have some great initiations. A lot of the drive-by or freeway shootings are the result of prospective members meeting the requirements.
If you run into some of the Salvadoran gangs, you won't have to do a darned thing to risk your life. And if you challenge their turf, your family will be putting daisies on the dirt above you in the near future.
Oh, come on. It's not that bad. I live near Burbank and Woodman. It's hardly Sadr City on a Saturday night.
Well, the Chief his priorities and I think we should all applaud his courage. After all, it is much easier to roust the homeless and cite jay walkers than it is to fight real criminals. Way to go Chief! My hero!
Why BK, you really are a xenophobe aren't you.
LOL
I'd not seen that before. I do appreciate the link.
If it was made illegal for citizens to carry or own firearms, then all of this gang violence would stop.
Secede, secede!!! We need to get out of the shadows of Los Angeles.
I grew up in the valley during the late 80s and early 90s. My family moved to Malibu, and I moved to the Westside. After my wife and I got married we bought our first house in Simi Valley (we love it here, West of of San Fernando Valley). Goign back to the San Fernando Valley has been a culture shock. I don't even recognize it anymore.
Shopping carts strewn about, signs in Spanish, and shopping centers that look like they came from a 3rd world country.
Was quite saddened by it actually. I wonder how long Simi Valley has to go until the Westward/Northward march continues for those of us who speak English (and hell, I'm not even white, my parents are immigrants to this country -- legal).
| Neighborhood | Population | Hispanic | White | NativAm | Asian | PacIsland | Black |
| San Fernando | 24,804 | 91.4% | 6.4% | 0.5% | 0.9% | 0.0% | 0.7% |
| Pacoima | 69,032 | 88.8% | 3.9% | 0.3% | 1.4% | 0.0% | 5.5% |
| Arleta | 29,452 | 81.6% | 7.6% | 0.4% | 8.7% | 0.1% | 1.6% |
| Sylmar | 64,079 | 75.1% | 16.9% | 0.4% | 2.8% | 0.1% | 4.7% |
| Panorama City | 77,908 | 74.7% | 8.3% | 0.2% | 13.2% | 0.1% | 3.4% |
| Sun Valley | 54,539 | 71.7% | 20.3% | 0.3% | 6.3% | 0.1% | 1.4% |
| Mission Hills | 18,764 | 69.0% | 17.6% | 0.4% | 9.3% | 0.1% | 3.6% |
| Lake View Terrace | 18,481 | 69.0% | 9.7% | 0.4% | 4.9% | 0.1% | 16.0% |
| Van Nuys | 128,078 | 59.2% | 26.3% | 0.3% | 7.5% | 0.2% | 6.5% |
| North Hills | 62,900 | 58.8% | 22.6% | 0.2% | 13.4% | 0.2% | 4.7% |
| Canoga Park | 44,254 | 58.1% | 25.4% | 0.4% | 11.3% | 0.2% | 4.7% |
| North Hollywood | 153,406 | 58.0% | 28.2% | 0.3% | 7.8% | 0.2% | 5.4% |
| Valley Glen | 49,839 | 51.2% | 37.8% | 0.3% | 5.6% | 0.1% | 5.0% |
| Reseda | 64,020 | 49.8% | 31.9% | 0.3% | 13.0% | 0.1% | 4.8% |
| Winnetka | 50,594 | 48.9% | 27.3% | 0.3% | 17.7% | 0.2% | 5.6% |
| Granada Hills | 68,748 | 33.0% | 45.2% | 0.4% | 17.1% | 0.1% | 4.3% |
| Tujunga | 25,767 | 29.3% | 60.0% | 0.4% | 7.2% | 0.1% | 3.0% |
| Burbank | 105,127 | 25.3% | 61.2% | 0.4% | 10.8% | 0.1% | 2.2% |
| Northridge | 84,334 | 24.6% | 50.2% | 0.2% | 18.8% | 0.2% | 6.0% |
| Valley Village | 20,705 | 23.1% | 64.3% | 0.2% | 5.3% | 0.1% | 7.0% |
| Sunland | 23,321 | 22.7% | 66.7% | 0.6% | 7.4% | 0.1% | 2.5% |
| Glendale | 203,905 | 18.8% | 60.2% | 0.2% | 19.3% | 0.1% | 1.4% |
| Tarzana | 34,714 | 16.1% | 72.3% | 0.2% | 7.0% | 0.1% | 4.4% |
| Chatsworth | 41,379 | 14.2% | 62.0% | 0.3% | 20.2% | 0.1% | 3.2% |
| Woodland Hills | 70,541 | 13.7% | 74.1% | 0.2% | 7.8% | 0.1% | 4.0% |
| Sherman Oaks | 56,280 | 11.2% | 76.5% | 0.3% | 6.7% | 0.1% | 5.2% |
| West Hills | 42,405 | 11.1% | 72.4% | 0.3% | 13.4% | 0.1% | 2.6% |
| Toluca Lake | 6,298 | 9.7% | 79.9% | 0.3% | 5.0% | 0.0% | 5.0% |
| Encino | 48,605 | 9.1% | 82.1% | 0.2% | 5.6% | 0.1% | 2.9% |
| Studio City | 41,400 | 8.1% | 81.6% | 0.2% | 5.8% | 0.1% | 4.2% |
| Calabasas-Hidden Hills | 24,920 | 4.8% | 86.9% | 0.1% | 7.1% | 0.0% | 1.1% |
You're a wellspring of information this morning. Thanks again.
I did that also. It's good info.
It'd be interesting to have columns with number of murders and murders per capita, on each line.
Good link finding that info.
News reports of crime are generally sanitized, if you catch my drift.
Google "the color of crime".
I have issues with the site, in general, but the data looks solid.
And that sanitization is a national thing.
Thanks for the tip. Yes, it is national. We wouldn't want folks to get nervous.
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