City murders down but ...
BY BRIANNE DOPART, The Herald-Sun
January 4, 2007 12:09 am
DURHAM -- The Bull City's murder rate decreased by almost half in 2006 -- but don't expect the mayor to brag about it.
Mayor Bill Bell said Wednesday the city's recent rise in violent crime -- third-quarter statistics show it's at a four-year high -- minimizes the seemingly impressive fact that 18 fewer lives were claimed by violence in 2006 (19) than in 2005 (37).
"We're not beating our chests because we had 14 instead of zero," Bell said. His use of the number 14 is derived by omitting four of the 2006 cases because they were ruled justifiable homicides and a fifth -- which occurred Dec. 29 -- tentatively has been labeled self-defense but remains "under investigation," according to police spokesman Cpl. David Addison.
City Manager Patrick Baker echoed the mayor's sentiments. He said he would only be satisfied when the murder rate hit "zero."
Bell said he and the City Council made note of a spike in violent crime after the Police Department's second-quarter report showed a 35 percent increase in violent crimes -- from 678 in the first six months of 2005 to 917 in 2006.
At the time, Bell demanded that police look into the sharp rise, he said. Third-quarter statistics showed no appreciable improvement. The number of violent crimes showed a 32 percent increase over the first nine months of 2005.
The Police Department has yet to compile its 12-month violent crime report for 2006.
Baker and City Councilman Thomas Stith are concerned about the dramatic rise in violent crime during the year. They said it would lead to more violence in the year to come.
"A continuing increase in violent crime provides an environment for a continuing increase in homicides," Stith said.
Asked to put the drop in homicides in context with the increase in violence, Stith said he would be interested to learn how many gunshot wounds were reported this year to see if "in fact we've just been blessed with good medical facilities in Durham" that have saved the lives of wounded individuals who might otherwise have died and become homicide statistics.
Baker, however, argued that Durham has long benefited from quality medical services. He said it's unfair to attribute a rise in homicides to the incompetence of law enforcement while linking a dip in killings to good medical care.
While opinions may differ on who or what caused the 2006 decrease in homicides, Bell said he is extremely pleased with the job law enforcement has done solving the bulk of the year's murders.
Arrests have been made in 11 of the city's homicides (the four justifiable shootings are considered to be "exceptionally cleared", according to the Police Department's published reports) and arrests have been made in two of Durham County's three homicides. Those slayings all took place outside city limits.
Investigators with the Durham County Sheriff's Office have said they are zeroing in on suspects in the most recent -- and third -- county homicide, the slaying of Jose Luis Sifuente Castillo.
Despite differing perceptions of how violence should be handled in the city, Bell and Stith agreed the Police Department should do a better job releasing its crime statistics.
Currently, reports presented to City Council include charges illustrating "violent crimes" and "aggravated assaults" but make no mention of assaults involving guns.
Bell said he has asked for better statistics, and hoped a new crime analyst hired recently by the department would be able to present a more detailed, accurate picture.
Jim Soukup of Durham's 911 Center did not respond to a call regarding the number of gunshot wounds reported during 2006. But in an earlier interview, he said more than 2,700 reports of shots fired had been received in 2006. Duke Hospital and Durham Regional Hospital do not release gunshot information because of privacy laws.
While Bell said a possible solution to the continued increase in violence might come in the form of security cameras he hopes to have installed in the city within the next two months, Stith said the answer to the city's growing problem with violence would come in the form of new Police Department leadership.
Police Chief Steve Chalmers has announced his retirement and City Manager Patrick Baker has said he hopes to have a replacement in place by mid-August.
URL for this article: http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-805415.cfm
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Lucky officers must now face the judge
The Herald-Sun
January 3, 2007 6:16 pm
In late October, Gary Lee and Scott Tanner, two Durham police officers charged with assaulting a man during a brawl outside of a Raleigh bar, got a lucky break when District Judge Debra Sasser dismissed the charges against them on a technicality.
The prosecutor working the case, Wake County Assistant District Attorney Matt Goodwin, made the unfortunate mistake of not establishing that the alleged crime took place in Sasser's jurisdiction -- Wake County. For Lee and Tanner, both of whom were fired by Chief Steve Chalmers after the Durham Police Department conducted its own investigation into the alleged assault, it must have felt like Sasser was giving them an early Christmas present.
But on Tuesday, Superior Court Judge Ronald Stephens spoiled the gift when he sent the case back to Sasser for reconsideration. Now, Sasser will have to decide whether to rule on the case or call for a new trial.
We think Judge Stephens made the right call. Any case involving law enforcement officers allegedly assaulting a citizen screams for a full hearing. To do anything less erodes the public's confidence in law enforcement and the judicial system. As we have said many times before, law enforcement officials must be held to a higher standard than ordinary citizens. There are no doubt many citizens who probably believed that Tanner and Lee got a special break in Judge Sasser's courtroom.
For the record, we don't think that was the case. But Sasser's decision looked especially bad because two other Durham police officers -- James Griffin and Richard Clayton -- had corroborated the story of the alleged victim, Rene Dennis Thomas, a former cook at Blinco's Sports Restaurant and Bar where the incident allegedly took place. Both said they saw Lee take a swing at Thomas and Tanner kicking or trying to kick Thomas in the face after the men exchanged racial slurs.
We hope Judge Sasser will carefully consider the evidence before her and do whatever is neccessary to bring this matter to a fair close. Regardless of the outcome, the public's interest is better served by revisiting the case and declaring Lee and Tanner either guilty or not guilty of the crimes of which they have been accused.
URL for this article: http://www.heraldsun.com/opinion/hsedits/56-805262.cfm