Posted on 04/04/2007 6:56:48 AM PDT by Ellesu
Stephanie Pedro, 27, is no Paul Kersey, the New York architect-turned-vigilante Charles Bronson played in the the Death Wish movies. But the unrelenting crime wave that has gripped New Orleans in recent months has prompted the young urban planner to consider measures that she once considered extreme.
"When I walk my dog, I have a 20-dollar bill in one pocket and mace in the other," says Pedro, referring to "mugger money" she carries to hand over in hopes that an assailant will beat a quick retreat, and spray in case things turn uglier. "I've taken that initiative, but I think I need to go further," she says, citing a string of assaults in her quiet neighborhood near the French Quarter. "I would like to have a visible gun on my hip."
Pedro's roommate nixed that idea. But many New Orleans residents, alarmed by a rising post-Hurricane Katrina murder rate and the city's struggling criminal justice system's failure to stop it, haven't been dissuaded and are following through on the urge to arm themselves. In the first three months of this year, the number of people in New Orleans who were granted permits to carry a concealed weapon more than doubled, to 85, over the same period in 2005 — before Katrina, when the city's population was by most estimates at least twice what it is today. The increase was even starker in neighboring Jefferson Parish, where concealed weapon permit applications shot up 300%.
Since Katrina, weapons sales at Jefferson Gun Outlet in suburban Metairie are up about 40%, says the store's owner, Mike Mayer. And it's not the usual gun hobbyists that are buying. "They're not gun aficionados," Mayer says. "They're just doing it because they feel they have to."
The media is often accused of sensationalizing crime. But that's hardly necessary in New Orleans, which has logged at least 53 homicides since the beginning of the year — the highest murder rate, per capita, in the nation. There were seven unrelated killings in one recent four-day stretch, including four on April 2. National Guard troops and state police have been patrolling city streets since last June. But there appears to be little law enforcement can do to quell the violence, much of which is attributed to turf battles among drug gangs.
It's the random killings, however, like the still-unsolved January murder of filmmaker Helen Hill, that have spurred ordinary citizens to take up arms. Hill was the apparent victim of an early morning intruder at her home near the French Quarter; her killing, and a rash of other murders, prompted an emotionally charged march on City Hall that month.
City officials quickly trotted out a list of anti-crime measures such as late-night traffic checkpoints and crime cameras in hot spots. But a skeptical public is increasingly looking at ways to protect themselves. The topic comes up often in casual party chat and on Internet forums; a typical post on nola.com, the New Orleans Times- Picayune Web site, bears the heading "Armed Citizens Rule!" and reads, "would-be predators flee when a legally carried gun is presented instead of a wallet."
Predictably, such chatter has law enforcement officials concerned. "Not just for our safety or theirs," says New Orleans Police Department sergeant Donovan Livaccari. "But people should know where their rights begin and where they end. I think a lot of people are unaware that, in Louisiana, you can have a weapon in your car, but once you leave your car, you're subject to a whole different set of circumstances. Also, where you're allowed to use deadly force; by law, you're not allowed to use deadly force to protect property."
Livaccari points out that, in a holdup, a gun-waving victim is more likely to end up shot than one who simply hands over money — though his message isn't helped by incidents like one last October in which a would-be victim shot and killed a man he told police was trying to rob him and a female companion at gunpoint near the French Quarter. Then there's the possibility that a gun will be stolen and used in other crimes. But as long as the sense of being under siege persists, such concerns aren't likely to dampen sales of guns, pepper spray, guard dogs and other weapons in New Orleans.
The looming hurricane season is likely to add fuel to the fire; memories of the mayhem that followed Katrina are still fresh, and as in that storm, there will be those who choose to stay and fight rather than evacuate. "We'll see more sales heading into hurricane season," predicts Mayer.
Meanwhile, the storm of violence plaguing New Orleans has residents like Pedro wrestling with potentially life-altering decisions about safety. "I never had to think about getting a gun before," she says. "But if people are coming into your house, what do you do?"
Vivian Westerman, 64, a resident of New Orleans, stands in a doorway of her home with g her new .38 revolver, March 13, 2007.
“Armed Citizens Rule!” and reads, “would-be predators flee when a legally carried gun is presented instead of a wallet.”
Arming yourself with money to give to thugs is not exactly the way the Founding Fathers/ citizens’ militia did it.
What a quagmire! Soon people will turn to militia’s for protection... then it will be a full-blown civil war. What’s the date when we will finally have our troops out of that meat grinder? ;-)
I could not believe I read that.
Bush’s fault!
We need to increase the amount of Katrina money going down there and regulate CO2 emissions in the city. That’ll fix the problem.
(/sarcasm)
When we visited New Orleans in the early 1990’s we didn’t feel safe - long before Katrina.
I was assaulted in the work out room of the large Marriott hotel in the French Quarter.
Large gangs of teens ran through the Woolworth’s grabbing everything in sight.
Large gangs of teens were running through the streets of the French Quarter side swiping the tourists, many of whom were elderly.
We were warned not to go “off the beaten path” in other sections of the city.
Even the taxi driver ripped us off.
She obviously needs a larger dog. I don't worry about this when my girls walk the Rottweiler.
“They’re not gun aficionados,” Mayer says. “They’re just doing it because they feel they have to.”
Bitch-slapped in the face by reality, the hand-wringers decide to defend themselves.
No less a self-defense personage than Massad Ayoob admits to, and recommends carrying, buyoff money. Page 65 of In the Gravest Extreme.
While shooting a perp is probably the right answer long-term, societally, the personal reality is that shooting someone on the street, or even just brandishing, can turn into an expense legal defense proposition. Especially if you’re in a neighborhood with a Nifongish prosecutor.
"We be proud of our #1 ranking. So what if it's murder ranking. "
How bout if we just blow up the levees again like Farakan said we did. That would solve the problem.
Life is like a box of chocolates.......
Is he recommending against concealed carry because the gun might be stolen while you're carrying it? That's a pretty extreme example of altruism: "hmmm, if I carry a gun, yes it might save my life; on the other hand, somebody might steal it. The gun, I mean. From me. While I'm carrying it. Concealed."
I gave up on NO after a 'bad trip' to the World's Fair...when-ever that was.
I never went to downtown at night and especially during Mardi Gras. Why risk your life for a few hours of fun?
What happened to the guns that were confiscated after Katrina?
Keep your money in a money clip that could be coughed up and your wallet/purse secured elsewhere. The reasoning being that most perps would take the quick money and the victim gets to keep their ID & credit cards.
I'm not saying that it's a good system, just that that's how some people do it.
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