Crime In The Heights

[EMME]

I heard there was a shooting, somebody shot in the abdomen, the shooter claiming self defense. Nothing more.

[J008]

I spoke with some of the people at Antidote who said they heard gunshots and then a woman yelling that her son had been shot. Someone saw the victim standing on the street before the cops came and he appeared to have been shot in the stomach. Don't know if it was a robbery attempt or not, but I did not get the impression that it was.

[EMME]

Account from a friend who lives closeby:

"Drunk jerk and girlfriend were fighting in an elderly homeowners yard. Homeowner stepped out and said something to the couple. Drunk jerk threatened the homeowner. Homeowner got his gun and shot drunk jerk in the stomach. Drunk jerk taken to hospital, wound was not life threatening. Police arrested homeowner. According to Martin Hajovsky, both drunk jerk and homeowner have been released."

[fwki]

Well, I heard a completely different story....had something to do with this nut in his mother's electric wheelchair over-hears a domestic dispute next to Antidote and he intervenes with his gun. I would have laughed it off, but I've seen this guy before cruising towards Antidote in the middle of the street dog-cussing cars.....so take it for what it's worth.

[RedScare]

Well, I heard a completely different story....had something to do with this nut in his mother's electric wheelchair over-hears a domestic dispute next to Antidote and he intervenes with his gun. I would have laughed it off, but I've seen this guy before cruising towards Antidote in the middle of the street dog-cussing cars.....so take it for what it's worth.

This is why I don't hang out on the half streets. Everyone on the half streets seems to be a half brick shy of a full load.

[AtticaFlinch]

Well, I heard a completely different story....had something to do with this nut in his mother's electric wheelchair over-hears a domestic dispute next to Antidote and he intervenes with his gun. I would have laughed it off, but I've seen this guy before cruising towards Antidote in the middle of the street dog-cussing cars.....so take it for what it's worth.

Well, I heard a completely different story... had something to do with two escaped panda bears, a one-eyed man, thirty-three circus clowns and one Volkswagen Beetle, the old kind. It had something to do with who kept the spoils from a ruptured pinata. Or so I hear.

[Jesse]

Well, I heard a completely different story... had something to do with two escaped panda bears, a one-eyed man, thirty-three circus clowns and one Volkswagen Beetle, the old kind. It had something to do with who kept the spoils from a ruptured pinata. Or so I hear.

LIAR!!

I heard it was 3 pandas

[RedScare]

LIAR!!

I heard it was 3 pandas

I think you are confusing pandas and pinatas.

[AtticaFlinch]

I think you are confusing pandas and pinatas.

Or maybe it was three pandas and there was never even a pinata in the first place... Come to think of it, I think it was actually a fight over the spoils of a ruptured bladder. I don't know, my witness had eaten a nickle bag of mushrooms and only saw the event out of the corner of his eyes as he was busy licking a tree at the time.

[RedScare]

So, was this electric wheelchair from the Scooter Store, or was it a Hoveround? Do you think Medicare and their insurance covered the entire cost?

[Heightsite]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33017602

Looks like the trio were "working" near 11th & TC Jester! Way cool the mailman & retired cop helped catch the perps. Kudos to Roy & Tommy! Everyone needs to keep watch since it appears to be the best (only?) way to stop crime in our hood.

[heights_yankee]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33017602

Looks like the trio were "working" near 11th & TC Jester! Way cool the mailman & retired cop helped catch the perps. Kudos to Roy & Tommy! Everyone needs to keep watch since it appears to be the best (only?) way to stop crime in our hood.

with their baby. they should get extra time for that!

[RedScare]

Good job by the mailman and retired cop.

For those who who haven't read the article, the 3 people arrested were burglars, not robbers. Robbers commit theft from a person by force. Armed robbers, of course, do so with a weapon. Home invasions are armed robberies committed within one's home. I realize that it is all just crime to some people, but these crimes carry varying degrees of risk. Run of the mill burglars are generally unarmed, and are searching for homes that are unoccupied. They tend to run when seen or confronted. They are the most common, and extremely frustrating when one comes home to a broken window and empty entertainment center and jewelry box, but not nearly as dangerous as robbers. Because robbers seek out and confront their victims, they are much more prone to violence, and therefore, much more dangerous.

[fwki]

So, was this electric wheelchair from the Scooter Store, or was it a Hoveround?...

I am going to look into this, but I think it's a Chevy Volt protoype. A nickle bag of anything wouldn't phase my witness, the flashbacks alone keep him kinda jumpy, but he says he knows this Prius owner wannabe and alleged shooter.

[AtticaFlinch]

Everyone needs to keep watch since it appears to be the best (only?) way to stop crime in our hood.

If you're relying on the cops to do more than help generate city and county revenue by writing tickets, you'll end up disappointed. Looking after each other is the only way to stop criminals.

[ricco67]

If you're relying on the cops to do more than help generate city and county revenue by writing tickets, you'll end up disappointed. Looking after each other is the only way to stop criminals.

It's a depressing thing that you're that cynical about police.

Perhaps next time you get robbed or into a traffic accident, just suck it up and get over it instead of calling the cops.

Then again, shooting them might be good too, if you're fast enough.

[kylejack]

I was at Lucky's last night and on Walker there is a long stretch of what appears to be street parking spaces marked off. DON'T PARK THERE. There's a tiny sign at the end of the block that says Commercial Truck Zone. The only things in the immediate area are Lucky's, Warehouse Live, Herrin Lofts and that's about it. So does Lucky's need three blocks worth of Commercial Truck Zone for their deliveries? I doubt it. Seems to me like its more of a ticket trap for HPD to rack up parking tickets. Every single slot was occupied and every single vehicle had a ticket on the windshield. I shook my head in amazement and took the ticket off my friend's car to bring in and show him, which was most certainly a mistake because when we came back out there was another ticket.

They probably get dozens of Warehouse Live and Lucky's guests every single night.

[AtticaFlinch]

It's a depressing thing that you're that cynical about police.

Perhaps next time you get robbed or into a traffic accident, just suck it up and get over it instead of calling the cops.

Then again, shooting them might be good too, if you're fast enough.

A friend's vehicle was robbed... er, burgled in a secured parking garage not too long ago. The only imporatant thing taken was a laptop, but a window had also been broken. When a cop did finally arrive (two hours after they'd been called, no less), he told us he wasn't actually there to deal with us, but had responded to a different call for something entirely different that had occurred even earlier. He acted put out, with heavy sighing, when we asked if he wouldn't mind helping us too. He quickly jotted a few things down in a notebook, then tore off a sheet of paper which he handed to us with the words, "Here, give this to your insurance provider."

"Is that it?"

"The insurance company will handle the rest."

"Is there going to be an investigation?"

"We'll contact some pawn shops and see if the computer turns up."

"Aren't you going to dust for fingerprints? This might be someone who's already in the system."

"No. We'll contact you if we find anything."

Oh yeah, one more note about this cop's usefulness... This vehicle was one of about a dozen that was burgled in that garage. Other people were standing around waiting for a cop to show up. All in all, about a dozen cars were burgled, but that cop tore off out of the garage, leaving several people waiting, biding their time to get their turn with the cop. He didn't want to waste his time dealing with an actual crime, of which when all the vehicle damages were added together, and all the stolen goods were added together, could have most likely led to a felony arrest had even a tiny amount of investigation been done. This isn't an isolated incident. This happens all the time, in Houston and elsewhere. If cops had a purpose beyond acting as a creative tax revenue generator, I'd be less cynical about them.

I have been robbed before. My own vehicle has been burgled before. I've had a traffic accident before. I never call the cops because I don't need to wait several hours for them to appear just to tell me to call my insurance agent. I can handle that simple task without their intervention.

As far as the shooting them thing goes, c'mon, was that necessary? Are you implying simply because I don't think most cops are very useful I want them to die? What an odd leap of logic.

[kylejack]

Yeah, they never dust for breakins in my experience. It sucks.

[heights]

I was at Lucky's last night and on Walker there is a long stretch of what appears to be street parking spaces marked off. DON'T PARK THERE. There's a tiny sign at the end of the block that says Commercial Truck Zone. The only things in the immediate area are Lucky's, Warehouse Live, Herrin Lofts and that's about it. So does Lucky's need three blocks worth of Commercial Truck Zone for their deliveries? I doubt it. Seems to me like its more of a ticket trap for HPD to rack up parking tickets. Every single slot was occupied and every single vehicle had a ticket on the windshield. I shook my head in amazement and took the ticket off my friend's car to bring in and show him, which was most certainly a mistake because when we came back out there was another ticket.

They probably get dozens of Warehouse Live and Lucky's guests every single night.

What on earth does this have to do with Heights Burglars?

[heights]

A friend's vehicle was robbed... er, burgled in a secured parking garage not too long ago. The only imporatant thing taken was a laptop, but a window had also been broken. When a cop did finally arrive (two hours after they'd been called, no less)

I have been robbed before. My own vehicle has been burgled before. I've had a traffic accident before. I never call the cops because I don't need to wait several hours for them to appear just to tell me to call my insurance agent. I can handle that simple task without their intervention.

Maybe next time your friend can be as smart as you and not bother wasting the cop's time by calling for one. Better yet, maybe your friend will call you and you can go over there and handle it.

[kylejack]

Somebody needs a nap!

[AtticaFlinch]

What on earth does this have to do with Heights Burglars?

Bruce Lee once said to be like water. Threads meander like streams. Fighting the flow of water is a pretty useless waste of time.

Maybe next time your friend can be as smart as you and not bother wasting the cop's time by calling for one. Better yet, maybe your friend will call you and you can go over there and handle it.

I was already there, and the choice wasn't mine to call the cops, nor to wait for them either. Besides, any attempt to uphold the peace shouldn't ever be considered a waste of a cop's time. That's a cop's job, or at least that's what we're told it is. Their job description seems to have changed over the years. Now their job is to generate revenue from the alternative taxes they collect.

[heights]

any attempt to uphold the peace shouldn't ever be considered a waste of a cop's time. That's a cop's job...

...their job is to generate revenue from the alternative taxes they collect.

Can't have it both ways.

[AtticaFlinch]

Can't have it both ways.

Oh, no. There's a communication problem here...

What you're mistaking is what I think they should be employed to do, and what I perceive their actual job to be. You see, one's an ideal, and the other is reality. Take a moment and let it simmer. Then, maybe then, we can discuss it. There is no contradiction on my end, and even if there was, I'd choose the words of a man more brilliant than I'd ever hope to be: Do I contradict myself? Very well then. I am large, I contain multitudes.*

*Google it!

[RedScare]

Oh, no. There's a communication problem here...

What you're mistaking is what I think they should be employed to do, and what I perceive their actual job to be. You see, one's an ideal, and the other is reality. Take a moment and let it simmer. Then, maybe then, we can discuss it. There is no contradiction on my end, and even if there was, I'd choose the words of a man more brilliant than I'd ever hope to be: Do I contradict myself? Very well then. I am large, I contain multitudes.*

*Google it!

No contradiction perhaps, but maybe more like confusion as to what each cop does. HPD almost never gives out parking tickets. Parking Management handles parking tickets. This is not to say HPD NEVER gives out a ticket, but it is a miniscule part of their duties, small enough to say virtually never. The overwhelming majority of HPD officers are also not involved in giving out traffic tickets, either. Traffic Enforcement does most of that. Now, you may be pulled over for doing something stupid right in front of a cop, or on suspicion of DWI, but mostly traffic tickets fall to the small traffic force.

Most cops in Houston spend their shift running from one call to another. Property crimes get low priority. Violent crimes in progress get the highest priority. Property crimes are placed in order of call, and officers are dispatched to take the report. Fingerprints are lifted by Crime Scene officers, who are usually busy with much bigger crimes than a misdemeanor burglary of a vehicle. It is not surprising at all that the officer seemed in a hurry, since he was on his way to take another person's report when you insisted on making your report out of line.

[ToolMan]

AtticaFlinch needs to get in touch with reality. Houston would need 2000 plus HPD officers in order to visit every car theft, and don't call the police for a minor accident. I would much rather them be responding to high priority calls.

[AtticaFlinch]

AtticaFlinch needs to get in touch with reality. Houston would need 2000 plus HPD officers in order to visit every car theft, and don't call the police for a minor accident. I would much rather them be responding to high priority calls.

How's this for some reality? Houston has over 5000 officers. Harris County Sheriffs Department has over 4200 deputies. This doesn't even mention the DPS patrolmen or the various constable departments who run around the city and county. You mean to tell me, with a combined force easily measuring over 10,000 people on the streets, I shouldn't expect a cop to respond in a timely manner and do his job without complaint?

By the way, in regards to my out-of-touchness with reality, reread what I wrote prior to what you wrote:

What you're mistaking is what I think they should be employed to do, and what I perceive their actual job to be. You see, one's an ideal, and the other is reality.

You see, if the cops weren't busy tying up valuable resources handing out tickets for minor speed violations or other crap, they could be investigating crime. Crazy concept, I know. If they weren't too busy pulling people over for going 65 in a 60, then you wouldn't have to worry about hoping they are responding to high priority calls over car thefts and minor accidents. They could do both.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Houston_Police_Department

http://www.linkedin.com/companies/harris-county-sheriff%27s-office

[heights_yankee]

AtticaFlinch needs to get in touch with reality. Houston would need 2000 plus HPD officers in order to visit every car theft, and don't call the police for a minor accident. I would much rather them be responding to high priority calls.

while i agree that police do not need ot make my car break in a priority when i know that there are home invasions and arson happening, this is very bad advice. by all means, report any and every crime.

[heights]

by all means, report any and every crime.

I agree. Minor accidents can be reported by filling out a Citizen's Accident report (or something like that -- I think they call it a Blue Form) -- no police officer necessary. Minor thefts and property crimes and lost wallets, etc. can be reported on the internet.

And Attica, let's suppose HPD employs 5000 peace officers. About 1500 of those are supervisors that do not respond to calls in the field (they just made ANOTHER Assistant Chief who will require a bunch of people for support staff). There are probably at least 1000 officers assigned to non patrol positions (investigators, jail, community services, support positions, traffic enforcement, helicopters, training academy, etc.).

So lets say HPD has 2500 patrol officers. Each patrol officer is assigned to work about 2080 hours per year, but when you take out 10 holidays, 20 training days, and (at least) 15 vacation/sick days per year, that leaves 1680 hours. So the patrol officers have a total manpower of 4.2 million manhours per year. Divide that by the number of actual hours in a year (8760) and that tells you that at any given time there are an average of 479 patrol officers on the street.

Divide that into about 2.2 million residents and you'll see that EACH patrol officer is responsible for responding to the current needs of nearly 4600 residents.

Sure there are people that will go their entire lives without ever calling the police, but there are people that have so much drama in their lives they call the police every day.

And I just realized that I actually seem to agree with RedScare on something.

Edited September 27, 2009 by heights