Crime update 7.9.07

In essence, not bad...

...but when it was over: The Essence Festival concluded Saturday with what seemed like fewer crimes than normal last week. But the Marigny Triangle--at the opposite end of the 8th District from most of the festivities--was walloped with 3 armed robberies over the weekend.

On Friday night (7.6.07) at 11:50 p.m., a 20-year-old black guy was sitting on the steps of his house on Frenchmen Street at N. Rampart Street, talking on his cellphone. A black man coming down Frenchman started to pass him, then turned back, pulled a semi-automatic .45 from under a beige and red towel, and pointed it at the victim's head. He demanded the victim hang up the phone, empty his pockets and give him his wallet. The victim complied, and when the perpetrator laid down his gun while rifling through the wallet with both hands, the victim ran off. But then he turned around and followed the perpetrator to Elysian Fields Avenue, where the perpetrator went into Gene's Po'boys at St. Claude Avenue. The victim ran across Elysian Fields and flagged down a 5th District cop car which responded immediately and apprehended the perpetrator as he exited the po'boy shop.

Arrested was Patrick Jones, 31, whose last know address was on Old Gentilly Road. He has a history of arrests for possession of marijuana and heroin. He was arrested in December, 2005 as a felon in possession of a firearm and was out on $21,000 bond, awaiting his next court hearing on 7.18.07. His bond for this latest arrest was set at $125,000 and he's sitting in OPP.

On Sunday morning (7.8.07) at 1:28 a.m., there was an armed robbery at Touro and Royal streets, in which police arrested a suspect. The police report is not yet available.

On Sunday night (7.8.07) at 7 p.m., there was an armed robbery at Dauphine and Frenchmen streets. The robber is still at large. The police report is not yet available.

Car crimes abound: Car thefts and car burglaries are getting out of hand, despite 8th District NOPD officers managing to arrest a couple of car thieves and another couple of car burglars. But those perpetrators didn't seem to be the cause of the car crime wave: There were 12 cars stolen in the 8th District last week (from 7.1.07 to 7.7.07), with 3 of them on the last day of Essence Festival on Saturday--plus another 6 on Sunday (7.8.07) and a carjacking, all in the CBD.

A 29-year-old black woman lost her brand new 2007 Nissan Maxima in the carjacking in the 500 block of O'Keefe Street at 1:07 a.m. Sunday when a black guy ran out of the parking lot across the street as she was returning to her car. He demanded her keys, which she dropped into his hand, and he fled in the tan car with temporary Louisiana tags up O'Keefe, stopping at Lafayette Street to pick up his accomplice before continuing down O'Keefe toward Poydras Street.

There were 13 car burglaries in that time too. (My own car was vandalized again too--for the 7th time in as many years...I know: "Welcome to the French Quarter...").

The cops arrested one guy for a car break-in on Thursday (6.28.07) in the 300 block of Burgundy Street, then scored a "2 fer" on Thursday (7.5.07) when they arrived on the scene of a car burglary reported in progress in the 900 block of Poydras Street at 2:33 a.m. They found a Chevy Trail Blazer with the passenger-side window broken out and a black man fitting the description a witness reported crawling out of the rear door of the vehicle with items from in it. When officers searched the suspect's pockets, they found a checkbook and credit card taken from another vehicle that had been broken into in the 500 block of Julia Street earlier in the evening.

They booked Ernest Arceneaux, 42, (right) with one count each of simple burglary and criminal damage under $500 and two counts of possession of stolen property. Back in 1995, the suspect pled guilty to pursesnatching and was given a 10-year sentence as a second-time offender. In 2003, the suspect pled guilty to simple burglary when the DA agreed not to charge him as a multiple offender; he was sentenced to 5 years in prison.

By my calendar, he shouldn't have been out to commit the 2003 crime, nor have been out to wander through the CBD last Thursday morning. I know, I know--"time off for good behavior". What, so they can return to bad behavior on the outside? We worry about judges or the DA cutting guys loose early before prosecuting them; we should be worrying about guys who are convicted and are out early walking amongst us. Let's see what Eddie Jordan does this time; I'm tired of my car being broken into--aren't you?

***

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler

Crime update 7.2.07

Nothing to celebrate...

A bad weekend: For anyone who was lulled into thinking maybe crime in the French Quarter was in the summer doldrums, think again. Three armed robberies and a couple more pursesnatchings began the holiday week:

Burgundy and Barracks streets: Two 24-year-old white guys were walking down Burgundy toward Esplanade Avenue at 2:33 a.m. on Friday (6.29.07) when 2 black guys with revolvers accosted them and demanded their wallets. While the victims were fishing out their wallets, one of the thugs struck one of the guys in the face with his gun, asking, "You think this is a f*****g game?" The thieves fled down Burgundy with the victims' wallets, one of which was worth more than the cash it contained, $30 and a credit card in a $300 Rogani wallet; the other wallet, worth $5, had $13 in it. The perpetrators were both described as being 17-25 years old, one 5'8" tall, weighing 150 pounds, the other 6'2" tall, weighing 175 pounds. The description of their clothes by the victims was so vague it added little to identifying them.

715 Gov. Nicholls St.: A man and a woman (ages and addresses not reported again) were walking on Gov. Nicholls toward Royal Street when they stopped to admire a garden at 12:27 a.m. Saturday (7.30.07). They noticed a black guy come up behind them and another black guy across the street coming toward them. He crossed the street and pulled a semi-automatic pistol, pointing it at them and demanding their money. The gunman forced the male victim to kneel facing the wall, while the other thug stood next to the woman and demanded her money. When she pulled only a credit card and ID from her pants, the thief refused. The other thief relieved the male victim of his wallet containing $30 and 2 credit cards. The crooks fled on Gov. Nicholls toward Bourbon Street. The detective investigating the case canvassed the area for video surveillance cameras, but found none.

The perpetrators were described as in their early 20s, one 6' tall and the other 6'3", both weighing 160 pounds. The shorter of the two had medium-length dreadlocks and wore dark clothing; the taller suspect wore a white shirt covering his face and had possibly a short afro or cornrows. A short time after this crime, there was an armed robbery at Canal and Tonti streets committed by two perpetrators matching the descriptions of these perps.

300 Bourbon St.: A 41-year-old black man was entering the Royal Sonesta parking garage at 5:25 a.m. Saturday (7.30.07) when he was approached by a big black guy who said, "Hey, m*****f*****r, give me your wallet!" The would-be victim turned and saw a butcher knife in the perpetrator's waist band. He screamed for help and ran toward the lobby. Two hotel employees ran out and chased the perpetrator off. He was described as 20-24 years old, 6'2" tall, weighing 200 pounds, wearing a white T-shirt and dark jeans.

St. Peter and Bourbon streets: A tourist from Bogota, Colombia stopped to take a picture at 1:15 a.m. Friday (6.29.07) when she was greeted by a local black dude who swiped her purse. He fled up St. Peter toward N. Rampart Street and the only descriptive information the victim could give was that he was wearing dark pants.

200 block of Royal Street: Another pursesnatching occurred Sunday (7.1.07) around 3 p.m., but the police report on that incident was not available.

What's it with girls and knives?: An officer on routine patrol Friday (6.29.07) about 9 a.m. in the 100 block of Elks Place arrested a 42-year-old black woman he saw with a knife going after a black man who was backing away with his hands up. The officer disarmed the woman who was wielding a wooden-handled kitchen paring knife and saw that the man had already been severely slashed on his upper arm. The victim said the woman had asked him for a cigarette and he told her she should get a job.

The next day (6.30.07), at 8:56 p.m. at 119 S. Rampart St., a 16-year-old black dude got into an argument with his ex-girlfriend and when he raised his hand, pretending he was going to strike her, she pulled a locking-blade knife and stabbed him in the wrist, inflicting a 2-inch laceration. She fled and her ex-boyfriend told police he knew her only as Jovana, thought she was 16 or 17 years old, and lived somewhere in the Iberville Housing Development. Must not have been a long-term relationship.

The difference a DA makes: Scott Peterson (remember him?) probably wishes he had asked for a change of venue to New Orleans. He's sitting on death row in California, awaiting execution for the murder of his wife and unborn son. The DA in Petersen's case had no eyewitnesses, found only partial bodies of the victims, wasn't able to show the cause of death, and couldn't produce a murder weapon. The most damning evidence against him was that he was having an affair with some twinky and he left his family on Christmas Eve to go fishing--things that would not appear at all unusual to jurors in Louisiana, at least the fishing part. Had Orleans Parish District Attorney Eddie Jordan prosecuted that case, Petersen would be free to go fishing whenever he wants and to date whom he chooses.

Here, Jordan has turned loose another killer because the lone witness refuses to testify. Didn't any of the victim's family riding in the car with him see anything when a thug fired two shots into the car, killing the drummer for the Hot 8 Brass Band? Where's the physical evidence? Didn't NOPD detectives locate a murder weapon? Didn't they have bullets to match to the weapon? We're going to have more murderers walking the streets unless the NOPD can turn up more than a single witness to a crime. Do they find one witness and say, "There, that's it, we've solved the crime!"? It's been said that eyewitness accounts are the least reliable evidence that's offered at trials, so why such a reliance upon it?

As for the 15-year-old girl the DA thought would make all the difference in the case, it's easy to understand that she would be afraid to get up on the witness stand and point her finger at the shooter. But for all her mama's efforts to protect, surely her mama knows "the streets talk", as they say, and that it's common knowledge in the 'hood who her daughter he is. Do you mean to tell me her mama thinks her daughter's safer with this hoodlum walking around than behind bars? She'd better hope that street justice takes care of him before he eliminates all possible witnesses.

And whatever happened to "obstruction of justice"? This refusal to testify is just going to spawn more violence on the streets. I agree with the group "Silence Is Violence"--their name says it all. While the government's justice may have been thwarted, the street's justice has yet to be meted out. The murderer knows there's no statue of limitations on murder, so he's apt to try to eliminate all the witnesses before charges can be brought again--that would include this 15-year-old girl and all the kin of the victim who were in the car, including his stepson who was the intended target to begin with. And if the stepson has allies of his own, the murderer better fear for his own life--they know he lives too. It's the way the streets work.

And for those of us in the French Quarter, we better hope this thug--who lives only 9 blocks outside the Quarter--doesn't come here to celebrate his new-found freedom. Scott Peterson probably would have loved it here.

(As for Jordan, be careful who you elect as DA this fall. Make sure the right candidates run for the office in the first place. Remember, we elected him four years ago thinking he could get the job done because he was the one who finally got the goods on Edward Edwards. Actually, that was done by his top assistant--Jim Letten.)

***

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler

Crime update 6.27.07

The night time is the right time...

If you're a crook, I guess. But if you live in the French Quarter or Marigny Triangle, it's the wrong time to be on the streets. The latest three crimes this week prove the point:

4:50 a.m. Sunday: We already told you about the woman who was robbed of $400 and her fancy purse and wallet in the 1000 block of Gov. Nicholls Street in our NOcrimeline Crime Alert on 6.25.07.

2:20 a.m. Monday: A woman and her boyfriend were at the intersection of Bourbon and Toulouse streets when a black guy came up from behind them and grabbed her purse off her shoulder. Nothing in the report to indicate what the thief got away with as he fled up Toulouse toward N. Rampart Street (where else?). He was described as 20-25 years old, 5'10" tall, 160 pounds, with a "low hair cut" (is that the same thing as "short hair"?), wearing a white tank top and blue jeans. Perhaps you've seen him.

5:15 a.m. Monday:A 39-year-old black man had his car stolen by another black man in the 200 block of Burgundy Street (y'all ought to know by now that's not a good place to park, no matter who you are). The victim noticed the perpetrator walking toward him on the sidewalk as he was going to his car. When he got to the car door, the guy asked him if he had a cigarette. When the victim told him "no" the crook took a step back and pointed a chrome semi-auto handgun at the victim's face. He told the victim to give him his wallet and car keys. The victim complied and was told by the gunman to "say nothing and I won't kill you." The thief drove off in the car, down Burgundy and turned onto Bienville Street toward, you guessed it, N. Rampart Street.

The car was a 2006 Honda Accord, silver in color, with Louisiana license plate ODD852. The thief also took the man's wallet containing 3 credit cards, and his cellphone.

The thief was described as 20-30 years of age, 6' tall, 180 pounds, thin, clean-shaven, and light complexion, wearing a black NY Yankees ball cap, white T-shirt and dark jeans.

Video update: We're getting more reports of video surveillance cameras being mounted on residences in the Quarter now that homeowners know they are not illegal. We would still like to hear of more installations from residents and businesses. Businesses have been particularly lax in contacting us, though the new Omni Bank alerted us to cameras on the exterior of its building at Chartres and Conti streets.

One encouraging thing we're hearing is from residents who seem to be interested in installing security cameras outside their homes. We've sent an inquiry to Roger Jones, the 8th District's "quality of life" officer, to see if he can provide any technical information and perhaps the names of contractors who work locally, but have heard nothing back yet. If any of you who already have cameras can offer advice on reliable contractors who could install a system and secure the necessary Vieux Carre Commission permits, please let us know.

***

Please forward this message to anyone interested in the quality of life in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle. To be added to our email list, send your FULL NAME and HOME ADDRESS to: NOcrimeline@gmail.com.

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler

Crime update 6.25.07

Be careful out there...

Summer muggies?: We all agree you should be able to walk the streets of the French Quarter or Marigny Triangle any time of the day or night. But you shouldn't. Here's another reason why:

Early Sunday morning (6.24.07), just before 5 a.m., a 47-year-old woman walking in the 1000 block of Gov. Nicholls Street, between Burgundy and N. Rampart streets, was mugged and robbed. She passed a black man who turned and struck her from behind, knocking her to the ground. He grabbed her purse and fled.

Besides a $75 Tagnello purse and $40 Liz Clairborne wallet, she lost $400 in cash, a credit card, her driver's license, and cellphone.

She was unable to give a description of the perpetrator, other than he was a black man. Enough said.

Two too close to home: Their murders didn't happen in the 8th District, but their connection to the Quarter was unmistakable. Two weeks ago on June 11, Robin Malta, co-owner of Salon d'Malta in the 1200 block of Decatur Street, was killed in his home in the Marigny. Then less than a week later on June 17, Chris Roberts, who worked at Fiorella's restaurant in the 1100 block of Decatur, was gunned down at his home in the 1900 block of Esplanade Ave.

I had just spoken briefly with Chris about 4:30 p.m. that Sunday afternoon; the police put his time of death at around 8:30 p.m. I didn't know him well; he was impressed I remembered his name from an earlier conversation. I had told him then that he bore an uncanny resemblance to Jay Thomas, a New Orleans boy who went on to be a famous DJ and actor on numerous sitcoms. Chris was embarrassed he didn't remember my name and said he had to work on his memory. Here's to his memory.

If it can happen in their neighborhoods, it can happen in ours. All the more reason to report anything that doesn't look right, like a stranger lurking on your street or someone following you. And all the more reason to take precautions, like not going walking in the wee hours or taking a taxi if you have to go into the most dangerous areas of the Quarter.

And it's gained national attention. Sen. Patrick Leahey noted in his opening remarks at the Senate hearing this past Wednesday (6.20.07) on the rise of crime since the storm:

• "Violent crime in New Orleans has reached near-epidemic proportions and emerged as the most serious threat to its recovery since the storm. In the first three months of this year, violent crime is up more than 100 percent compared to the same time a year ago."

• "The murder rate per capita is now the highest in America, more than 20 percent higher than in the any other major city. At its current rate, New Orleans has 12 times as many homicides as New York City, 3 times as many as Philadelphia, and twice as many as Washington, D.C."

• "Last year, there were more than 160 murders in the city, and so far, only one murder case has led to a conviction -- just one. The police have only brought a quarter of those cases to the district attorney to be charged, and the office has accepted only half of those for prosecution."

As I said, be careful out there.

***

Please forward this message to anyone interested in the quality of life in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle. To be added to our email list, send your FULL NAME and HOME ADDRESS to: NOcrimeline@gmail.com.

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler

Crime update 6.22.07

Everybody talks about crime, but...

Nobody does anything about it, to paraphrase Mark Twain: You might say that applies to video surveillance cameras. At last week's NONPAC meeting, Lt. Eddie Selby told how valuable the NOPD has found video cameras mounted outside businesses or residences to be in solving crimes, noting he'd like to have a database of citizens in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle who have surveillance cameras. NOcrimeline agreed to poll our subscribers to try to compile such a database. Out of nearly 500 subscribers, we got exactly ONE response locating a camera.

Does this mean no one really cares about crime? Does it mean they're too lazy to respond? Or are we all overestimating the number of video surveillance cameras in the Quarter? One person suggested that owners are reluctant to come forward because such cameras are prohibited by the Vieux Carre Commission.

That may have been true at one time, but in April the VCC, recognizing that "security cameras have proliferated" in the Quarter and "serve a wide variety of security functions, and, if selected and located properly, will intrude minimally upon the historic streetscape," adopted a policy "designed to limit the intrusive nature of these fixtures and to outline compatible equipment and methods for their proper installation."

The regulations don't seem to be too onerous, but Lary P. Hesdorffer, executive director of the VCC, notes that "a permit is required BEFORE cameras are installed (or replaced)." (That "or replaced" sounds like an out for those who put up cameras before obtaining VCC permission.) The easiest way to go if you want to install surveillance cameras might be to look in the Yellow Pages under "Security Control Equipment" and hire a contractor who could supply and install the equipment, after first getting the necessary VCC permit for you. If you're handy and want to do it yourself, one person who does have a camera installation in the Quarter says Wal-Mart has a good system. If you want a of copy the VCC regulations, NOcrimeline can send you those in PDF format--just email us your request.

But if you ALREADY have surveillance cameras installed, how about letting us know so we can supply that information to the 8th District NOPD. Your cameras might help solve a crime--isn't that what this is all about?

Another saying...: You know how they say a criminal always returns to the scene of the crime? Well, that did one crook in the other night.

It had been one of the quietest weeks in recent memory, crimewise, until Wednesday evening (6.20.07) just after 9:30 p.m. A man and woman, who live in the 1200 block of Esplanade Avenue, were walking on Esplanade Avenue near Royal Street, when they were robbed. Three black boys, all 16 years old, rode up behind the white couple on bicycles and surrounded them. One of the punks told them, "Y'all know what this is about--give it up!" The woman gave one of the kids her wallet and another kid asked the man for his wallet. The man said he didn't have anything other than his cellphone.

The perpetrators fled on their bikes with only the woman's wallet, but one quickly turned around and came back and asked the man for his cellphone so he couldn't call the police. He didn't have to--an off-duty sheriff's deputy arrived on the scene and nabbed the crook who came back to the scene of the crime.

The other two robbers were picked up later in the 200 block of Bourbon Street. They were all charged with simple robbery, and one was found in possession of crack cocaine. All were from Uptown (2400 block of Louisiana Avenue, 2400 block of Amelia Street, and 200 block of S. Johnson Street). What the hell were they doing in the Quarter? And at what time does the curfew law kick in? It seems like an awfully lot of perpetrators are using bicycles to rob and run--maybe it's time for "bicycle checkpoints" to nab some of these punks.

Rough and tumble robbery: A man is in serious condition at University Hospital with a fractured skull and possible broken neck after being robbed just after 3 a.m. Friday morning (6.22.07) in the 300 block of Bourbon Street. He and several friends (Capt. Hosli, please fix the computer so we can get more information about victims) were walking on Bourbon toward Canal Street when they were approached by 6 or 7 black men who tried to sell them Ecstasy. The victim started to walk away when one of the men pick-pocketed his wallet. The victim tried to get it back when the perpetrator slugged him with his fist on the left side of the head. The victim fell backward and landed on the concrete, suffering the injuries that landed him in the hospital.

The robber and his accomplices fled with the man's wallet. The attacker was a black man, described as 18-20 years old, 5'11" tall, 185 pounds, with ear-length dreadlocks, wearing blue jeans with a white T-shirt that had a colored print logo on it.

Be careful out there: You hate to be suspicious of everyone who doesn't look like you--but you know who the robbers are. If you see a driver in a car with temporary tags, or boys cruising aimlessly on bicycles, or someone following you while you're walking, don't hesitate to call 911 and have them checked out. Some might tell you to use the NOPD's non-emergency number--but it's better to assume you have encountered the enemy and stop them before harm's done.

***

Please forward this message to anyone interested in the quality of life in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle. To be added to our email list, send your FULL NAME and HOME ADDRESS to: NOcrimeline@gmail.com.

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler

Crime update 6.15.07

Notes from NONPAC

Sound familiar?: One lady wondered (via an email to NOcrimeline) why she should bother to go to NONPAC (New Orleans Neighborhood Policing Anti-Crime Council) meetings when so much of the information she heard Thursday night (6.14.07 ) from Lt. Eddie Selby sounded like what she'd already read in NOcrimeline emails. The reason it sounded familiar was because Lt. Selby and Sgt. Teri Meunier have been doing such a good job supplying the information to NOcrimeline.

As it stands now, we get an updated crime map DAILY listing the location and time of major crimes (those reported to the FBI); if we want more information on any particular crime, we request it and usually have the report within hours. Now if the NOPD can just get the computer glitch fixed so we have a better idea of who the victims are, it'll be darn near as good as it can get.

As Lt. Selby proudly told the group of 30+/- 8th District residents Thursday night, "You're getting more information faster now than anyone in the city ever has" (or words to that effect).

What do you see?: Noting the value that video surveillance has been in cracking a few recent cases, Lt. Selby said, "We'd like to know who has cameras" to form a database of citizen's who have video cameras mounted on their residences. Capt. Edwin Hosli, commander of the 8th District, has instructed all his detectives to canvas crime scenes for any nearby video surveillance cameras that might have recorded the crime. While cameras on commercial buildings are fairly obvious, those on residences may not be.

For whatever reason, those crime cameras Mayor Nagin has been blabbering about and giving his cronies contracts for, aren't making their way to the French Quarter or Marigny Triangle. So we're on our own.

We agreed to ask you, our subscribers, to send information to NOcrimeline if you have video cameras mounted on your residence or business in the Quarter and Triangle. We'll compile the information into a database for the 8th District NOPD to use; none of the information you supply will be shared with any other person or organization.

Send the following information about your surveillance camera to NOcrimeline@gmail.com with the word "Video" in the subject line:

• Location (your address, including nearest cross street)
  
• Target (what's it aimed at? your doorway? the street? more than one street?)
  
• Direction (toward the lake? the river? Canal Street? Esplanade Avenue?)
  
• Range (how far away can it clearly pick up images? to your driveway? to the end of the block?)
  
• Storage capacity (how many hours of action is stored? how long do you retain tape? can you make a tape or digital copy?)
• Contact person and phone number, along with best time to call.
• Additional information you think is pertinent (neighbors with surveillance systems?)
  

This is a real opportunity to help create a crime-fighting tool for the cops who are endeavoring to solve--and prevent--crimes in your neighborhood. The more participation we have from citizens, the more effective the tool will be.

Film at 9: Natasha Robin of WVUE/Fox8 news did a nice piece on NOcrimeline's efforts to relay information from the 8th District to the public. Fox8 shot footage at the NONPAC meeting and aired the piece Thursday night on the 9 o'clock newscast.

FBI looking at car thefts: Auto thefts (9 plus 12 car break-ins in the past 4 days) continue to bedevil motorists in the Quarter and CBD. Asked if there was anything citizens could do, Lt. Selby revealed the frustration in trying to curb one of the most difficult crimes to solve. One thing he did suggest was keeping your porch lights on to create better visibility to spot thieves stalking cars.

Without wanting to reveal too much detail, he said NOPD detectives are now working with the FBI's Major Case Detail in investigating the dozens of auto thefts that are plaguing the 8th District. There is some suspicion that tow trucks may again be hauling away cars favored by chopshops.

Patrols: Officers riding around in patrol cars with the windows rolled up and talking on cellphones is a perennial complaint.

Lt. Selby acknowledges, "We've become detached," but adds, "The scooters should combat that." Once officers are on the streets of the Quarter and Triangle on motorscooters, they'll be on eye-level with citizens and moving slower to interact with them.

The 8th District continues to add to its fleet of scooters to patrol the neighborhood. Training cops to use them suffered a setback this week when the Traffic Division officer who trains them to use the scooters was killed in a one-car accident over the weekend.

For those who doubt cops on patrol in cars are doing their job, Lt. Selby said any citizen willing to sign a "hold harmless" release form can ride along with an officer. Some citizens after the meeting said that might be a good way to keep officers on their toes--or at least off their cellphones.

Oops: If your name is Horton Driskill, we apologize. In our last crime update on 6.13.07, we had a guy by that name arrested for several business burglaries. Remember the thirsty thief? Turns out suspect's name is really Driskill Horton. Who knew? Confusing...as bad as a boy named Sue.

His was a case where surveillance cameras gave him away. An officer saw the video of the Esplanade Mini-Mart break-in and recognized the burglar as a guy who hung around Jackson Square.

***

Please forward this message to anyone interested in the quality of life in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle. To be added to our email list, send your FULL name and HOME address to: NOcrimeline@gmail.com .

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler

Crime update 6.13.07

Hang on...

...to your purses: The biggest threat to tranquility in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle in the past week has been purse snatchings. One suspect in the four incidents which occurred between 6.5.07 and 6.10.07 has been arrested and charged with simple robbery. He is Brandon L. Scott, a 21-year-old black man with shoulder-length dreadlocks, whose last known address was 4809 Francis St. He apparently was stupid enough to attempt his crime in full view of a Louisiana State Police trooper patrolling on Bourbon Street near Bienville Street on Thursday, 6.7.07, about 11:50 p.m. The trooper reportedly saw the suspect attempt to forcibly remove a woman's purse from her shoulder. After a brief foot chase, the trooper apprehended the suspect who was positively identified by the victim.

The next night a woman fell victim to a perpetrator who circled her like a buzzard. The woman (age, race, address unknown), who had just gotten off work shortly before 11:30 p.m., was sitting on some steps in the 900 block of Dauphine Street between St. Philip and Dumaine streets waiting for her daughter to pick her up. A black man approached and asked her what time it was. He continued to the corner, turned around and walked back toward the woman. Then he turned away and walked back to the corner. Then he walked back to the woman once again--but this time grabbed her purse and ran to St. Philip Street. A witness pursued the perpetrator on foot but lost track of him when he got to North Rampart Street.

The lesson is: if a buzzard is circling, don't lay there and play dead. Instead of taking her cellphone out of her purse and calling 911 when the man began acting suspicious, the victim lost the phone, her credit cards, ID, keys, and lots of other stuff when this bird grabbed her purse.

The perpetrator was described as a polite and soft-spoken, light-skinned black man, in his early 20s, 5'11", medium build, clean-cut, with close-cut hair. He was wearing a blue and white baseball cap, large white shirt, possibly sleeveless, and basketball-style jersey shorts, and black jeans, carrying a
messenger-style bag.

I guess if you get that many chances to see a robber before he strikes, it's easier to give a good description.

A 23-year-old black woman's purse was snatched Sunday, 6.10.07, at about 6 a.m. as she was sitting in her parked car in the 900 block of Canal Street talking with several men. Another man reached in the driver's side window and grabbed the woman's purse, which contained her cellphone, driver's license, and untold amount of cash. No one could give a description of the perpetrator.

Another suspect was arrested after he allegedly asked a 29-year-old white woman for $1 and then snatched her wallet when she opened her purse in the 300 block of Bourbon Street just before 5 a.m. on 6.7.07. Charged with simple robbery is Kenneth L. Wiley, a 48-year-old black man, whose last known address is 2418 1/2 D'Abadie St. He has a rap sheet going back to 1991. In recent court cases, lunacy hearings have debated whether or not he was competent to stand trial, with conflicting conclusions.

Thirsty, not greedy: 8th District cops arrested a suspect Tuesday for 3 business burglaries over the past month. Driskill Horton, a 42-year-old white guy, was linked to early morning break-ins at La Peniche restaurant, 1940 Dauphine St., on 5.14.07, the Pelican Club restaurant, 312 Exchange Alley, on 5.19.07, and the Esplanade Mini-Mart, 839 Esplanade Ave., on Sunday, 6.10.07.

The MO was similarly simple in each case. The perpetrator always came in the front way and left the same way, breaking through the front door in two cases and a picture window in the other. Nothing was reported missing from La Peniche, but from the Pelican Club the burglar took two bottles of rum valued at $20 (must have been the well brand) and from the Mini-Mart he took a bottle of Bacardi Superior Rum valued at $22.99 (his taste is improving) and a bottle of Ketel One vodka valued at $29.99 (maybe he has a friend).

What may have done him in was the video at the Mini-Mart which showed a white male, with green shirt and dark pants, break the glass door, enter the store, take the two bottles of liquor and--before exiting-- "one white cup".

Waste of cops' time: An 8th District officer had to drive all the way out to East Jeff hospital early Sunday morning to investigate what might have been a case of aggravated battery. The "victim", a 27-year-old black man, told the officer he had been drinking at several places in the French Quarter and was trying to get home by walking up Bienville Street toward North Rampart Street. The next thing he knew, he woke up in the East Jeff emergency room. His cousin picked him up at Bienville and Basin streets and drove him there after getting a phone call from the man, who received 15 stitches for a head wound and had other wounds and abrasions all over his head and body. There was no indication how the man sustained the injuries.

Keep an eye on your car: Car thefts--and a growing number of car break-ins--continue to be the bane of motorists in the French Quarter. Maybe the crooks are getting lazy in the heat of summer, but now the crooks seem more intent on breaking into autos than bothering to steal them. In the last 10 days, there have been 13 auto thefts, but 21 cars broken into. And they seem to be targeting the Quarter more, where most of the thefts had been in the CBD.

"Not Guilty" says robbery suspect: The suspect charged with the knife-point robbery of Bill Norris at his St. Philip Street home and 15 other crimes ranging from armed robbery to pursesnatching elsewhere in the city, pleaded not guilty in criminal district court on Tuesday. The attorney for Gary Lindsey is trying to get the court to suppress evidence, statements and identification in what might wind up being a long, drawn-out process to try to put this guy away for a long time. Besides the 16 charges Lindsey faces in court, 10 other charges the police had arrested him for where refused by the district attorney.

Reports flowing: Captain Edwin Hosli and his 8th District crew, including Lt. Eddie Selby and Sgt. Teri Meunier, have kept the reports of activities in the neighborhood flowing. NOcrimeline gets a map of all the crimes in the district virtually every day, with detailed reports following as requested. The glitch that redacts the victims' names and information hasn't been solved yet, but the Captain is working on it.

We should be thankful that the 8th District is being so forthcoming. It's hard to figure out what the NOPD, in general, is doing with information from headquarters or who's in charge of dispensing it. The Times-Picayune reported the other day that Lt. Bruce Adams was in charge of the Office of Public Affairs, but the NOPD website still lists Capt. Juan Quinton as commander. And have you noticed lately that Deputy Chief Marlon Defillo, who's head of the Public Integrity Bureau, has been the one giving sound bites to TV after major crimes? The last time the NOPD put out more than a trickle of information was when Defillo, from the time he was a lieutenant until he made chief, headed Public Affairs.

Be there: Try to attend Thursday's monthly NONPAC (New Orleans Neighborhood Policing Anti-Crime Council) meeting scheduled for 5:30 p.m., 6.14.07, at the Omni Royal Orleans hotel, 621 St. Louis St.

Residents of the Quarter and Triangle seem to have all sort of excuses for not dragging themselves out to this meeting every month, but I'd argue that if you're really serious about crime prevention in our neighborhood, you owe it to yourself and the police to be there. It's a great opportunity to quiz Capt. Hosli and his staff on issues facing the 8th District. You might ask him about what's being done about that reported crack house in the 2100 block of Burgundy Street; or about the suggestion for a "Slow Down Police Patrol"; or what you can do to prevent car thefts and break-ins.

Or you could thank him for supplying information for the NOcrimeline updates or just be there to show your support for the cops who there when they could be at home enjoying dinner with their families.

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Please forward this message to anyone interested in the safety of the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle. To be added to our mailing list, send your name and email address to: NOcrimeline@gmail.com.

As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

Thom Kahler