What to make of it all

Robberies? What robberies?: It's hard to believe, but there's been only one robbery reported in the 8th District (French Quarter, Marigny Triangle, CBD) in the past 2 weeks. And in that case, the would-be robber got the crap beat out of him so badly by the would-be victim it's hard to tell who the victim was. What happened was this:

Last Saturday night (12.5.09) around 11:40 p.m., a Lucky Dog vendor was working the intersection of Royal and Iberville streets when Gregory Garmany, 42, came up and asked for a dollar. When the vendor refused to give him one, Garmany allegedly pulled out a knife. This time, according to the police report, "the victim defended himself."

To look at Garmany's booking mugshot taken at Central Lockup shows why you don't mess with an ex-Marine, which the Lucky Dog guy reportedly is. Garmany, in the words of the police, "got his ass stomped." They had to wait for him to get out of the hospital before they could book him for attempted armed robbery.

Tourist go home: This one is not likely to anytime soon. Okay, so you're driving in a strange city and you accidentally turn the wrong way down a one-way street. If you get stopped by the cops, you take your ticket, get turned around the right way, and leave quietly.

But Michael Isble, 35, of Ft. Pierce, FL, had other ideas when he was stopped last Thursday morning (12.3.09) around 4 a.m. driving the wrong way on Conti Street near Dauphine Street. As one 8th District officer questioned Isble, the other officer stepped behind the car to record its license tag number.

That's when Isble allegedly threw the car into reverse, striking the unnamed officer and breaking his hand, before dashing off down Dauphine for 3 blocks with another cop car in pursuit. He crashed his car in the 100 block of Baronne Street, just across Canal Street, and then hopped out of the car and tried to flee on foot before cops proved swifter and caught up with him.

When it was all said and done, Isble was charged with attempted 1st-degree murder, public intimidation of a police officer, resisting a police officer and flight from an officer. He is being held on $135,000 bond on those charges. Plus he was charged with 10 traffic violations, including hit-and-run driving, no seat belt, no proof of insurance, among others.

Strangely enough, or not, he didn't appear to be drunk since he wasn't ticketed for DUI. So why was he so eager to flee?

You heard it here first: Hopefully you read Brendan McCarthy's story in the T-P on Sunday about Big Chief Warren Riley being criticized for meting out unequal discipline to his cops.

In the article, Jim Gallagher, of the local lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, claims Riley is motivated by the publicity generated by an officer's misconduct. He's quoted as saying: "If the case gets public notice, the superintendent acts one way, and if it doesn't get notice, he acts another way."

What's gone unmentioned is Riley's racism which clouds his decisions on whether or not to dismiss officers. While our evidence is anecdotal, we've heard repeated tales of white officers being fired by Riley while a black officer draws a brief suspension for the same infraction. (See NOcrimeline.com for 8.19.09)

No surprises there: You probably weren't surprised to read this morning's T-P headline: "NOPD performance satisfies only 1/3 of residents surveyed."

The survey, released by the New Orleans Crime Coalition, shows what you already know: That New Orleans residents are not satisfied with the job the NOPD is doing. But did you know that their dissatisfaction has as much to do with how they're treated by cops as it is by the crime rate.

What is maybe surprising is the number of residents of the 8th District who are dissatisfied. There's no indication they're specifically dissatisfied with the 8th District, but an analysis of the findings in the survey indicate that the residents of the 8th District:

• are better educated;
• have initiated more contact with police than other districts, and
• have lived in the 8th District (mainly French Quarter) a shorter time than residents of other parts of the city (leading them to be more apt to make comparisons with how things where they lived before--"up North we did it this way...")
  

Incidentally, the New Orleans results particularly pall in comparison with Nashville, TN, where 84% of the citizens are satisfied with their police department. The police chief there is Ronal Serpas, former chief of operations in New Orleans, who should be seriously considered for chief here under a new mayor.
Speaking of which: We should know by Friday all the candidates for mayor. Be sure to quiz them every chance you get on who they would appoint as the new police chief.

As we said before, pester them until you get an answer that has a first name and last name. Don't settle for any of that ambiguous crap, "We'll conduct a nationwide search."

If Riley's leaving when Mayor Nagin does as he promised, the new mayor is going to have to name a new chief on day-one. Even if it's an interim chief, the new mayor should know someone in the NOPD who can serve right away.

If a candidate for mayor doesn't know who they'll name, they haven't thought about the crime problem enough.

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As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome at NOcrimeline@gmail.com

Thom Kahler

Ahem...mayhem

Graffiti gangsters: While all right-thinking Americans were watching the Saints put an asswhipping on the Patriots on Monday night (11.30.09), a gang of graffiti terrorists were wrecking havoc in the French Quarter.

A loosely-knit international group billed as "Reclaim The Streets" was trying to muster a rally protesting the futility of prisons by demanding freedom for rappers "Lil Wayne" and "Lil Boosie", a couple of local punks who've pled guilty to various crimes.

In their nationwide publicity for the rally, they called for demonstrators to fill Canal Street from Rampart to Decatur streets. The best they would do was block traffic in the first block of Burgundy from Canal to Iberville Street with police barricades, metal garbage cans, and pieces of concrete, and then hang a sloppily-painted banner on a street post at Canal and Royal Street. Then 6 of them were caught spray painting graffiti on the front of 915 Conti St. (between Burgundy and Dauphine streets) around 9 p.m.

Off-duty military police reported the incident to 8th District cops and several officers on foot patrol gave chase and apprehended the miscreants nearby. They were charged with disturbing the peace, resisting arrest by fleeing, and criminal damage to property for the graffiti. The police didn't release the perps' names, but 3 were listed as homeless, 2 from Monroe and the other from Pennsylvania.

Game casualties?: Hard to tell whether it was poor losers (Southern) or over-exuberant winners (Grambling) after the Bayou Classic football game Saturday afternoon, but by Sunday (11.29.09), 7 men had been shot and one woman stabbed.

• Just before 2 a.m., 2 black dudes, 19 and 28 years old, got into an argument with another dude in the 700 block of Canal Street (between Carondelet Street and St. Charles Avenue). Rather than lose the argument, the lone dude pulled out a pistol and shot each of his adversaries. One was shot several times and the other once in the stomach. Both were in critical condition at LSU Interim Public Hospital.

The shooter was described as in his early 20's, 6' tall, weighing 150 pounds, with a light complexion and short hair, and wearing a white shirt and gray pants.

• Then an hour later, at 3:06 a.m., another argument broke out between 2 men in the 400 block of Bourbon Street (near St. Louis Street) and again, rather than lose an argument, one of them pulled out a gun and started firing. When the smoke had cleared, 5 men, ranging in age from 18 to 33, were left wounded, including a 20-year-old who was shot in the stomach and listed in critical condition at LSU Interim Public Hospital where all the victims were taken.

The assailant was described as 5'10" tall, weighing 300 pounds, with medium dreadlocks.

• The night before (11.28.09) and a block away, 2 black chicks got into it in the 500 block of Bourbon Street (between St. Louis and Toulouse streets) at 11:30 p.m. Apparently acquaintances (but not necessarily friends), the pair got into an argument and the 22-year-old woman felt a pain in her leg and discovered she had been stabbed. She was treated at West Jefferson Hospital and released.
  

8th District detectives showed her a photo line-up and she positively identified Shaquita Coleman, 20, as the woman who knifed her. A warrant has been issued for Coleman's arrest.

Foul smelling, foul play?: It's too early to tell if the body of a dead man fished from under the wharf on the river near Conti Street on Monday (11.30.09) afternoon was the result of a homicide.

The body was discovered by a homeless man who stays under the wooden walkway. The coroner's office said the body appears to be of a man in his 40's and had probably been dead for a few days and had washed up on the rocky shore.

An autopsy was schedule for today (12.1.09).

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As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome at NOcrimeline@gmail.com

Thom Kahler

Black Wednesday

Even blacker Friday: A black thug--maybe trying to get a jump on the holiday bar robbery season--struck 2 bars in the Marigny Triangle and possibly another in the Marigny Rectangle on Wednesday (11.25.09) morning.

But 8th District detectives arrested James M. Wilson, 31, last night (11.27.09) just before midnight. He was charged with armed robbery with a firearm and attempted armed robbery with a firearm. The charges arise from the attempted robbery of Checkpoint Charlies, 501 Esplanade Ave., around 6:30 a.m. where the bartender refused to give up any money, and then the robbery of Iggy's bar, 1943 N. Rampart St., where the bartender handed over the loot.

In both cases, the robber was described as 23 to 25 years old, 5'9" tall, weighing 150 pounds, and wearing a gray hoodie. Video surveillance in both bars apparently confirmed that identification.

There is word on the street that Kajun's Pub, 2256 St. Claude Ave., just across Elysian Fields Avenue, was also robbed Wednesday morning, but there is no report from the 5th NOPD District there to confirm it.

It is not known if Wilson is linked to another robbery the next day, on Thursday (11.26.09) around 2:10 p.m., just around the corner from Iggy's in the 1600 block of Pauger Street. A white man walking down the street was accosted by a black dude who pulled out a pistol and demanded his money; the victim complied.

The robber was identified as 20 to 25 years old, 5'8" tall, weighing 170 pounds, medium build and medium complexion, and wearing a dark-colored hoodie and dark pants.

'Tis the season: Every year robbers seem to pop up like malevolent elves using tourists and residents as ATM machines:

• Thursday (11.26.09) 10:14 p.m.: A white couple taking a Thanksgiving evening stroll in Spanish Plaza (Poydras Street at the river) were robbed by 2 black dudes, one of whom pulled a pistol. The male victim gave up his cash and the robbers fled.

One robber was described as 5'10" tall, weighing 160 pounds, with short hair, and wearing a dark-colored hoodie and dark blue jeans; the other was 5'8" tall, weighing 150 pounds, with short hair, and wearing a black Saints sweatshirt and dark jeans.

• Tuesday (11.24.09) 9:50 p.m.: A white woman walking near Dauphine and Frenchmen streets in the Marigny Triangle had her purse grabbed from her shoulder by a black punk riding by on a bicycle.

The robber was described as 15 to 20 years old, weighing 140 pounds, with a thin build and short hair, wearing a brown hoodie. The bicycle was an older model, brown, with a banana seat.

• Monday (11.23.09) 7 a.m.: A white woman walking in a parking garage in the 500 block of Convention Center Boulevard (near Poydras and the Harrah's complex) was approached by a black dude who demanded her purse. She surrendered it and he fled on foot.

The perp was described as 5'10" tall, with a thin build and dark complexion, and wearing a multi-colored sweatshirt.

• Friday (11.20.09) 3:30 a.m.: A white man walking in the 600 block of Royal Street (between Toulouse and St. Peter streets) was slugged by a black guy who took his wallet. As the alleged perp tried to flee the scene he was observed by a passing patrol car.

The officer apprehended Jerry Lewis, 52, and charged him with simple robbery. (Tomorrow's his birthday, but unless you've got $40,000 for his bail, there's no gift that will get him out of OPP.)

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As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome at NOcrimeline@gmail.com

Thom Kahler

Now this is serious

Too close for comfort: It's amazing how a crime can occur right under your nose and you don't see or hear a thing.

While we were sitting watching the late news after the football game Monday (11.16.09) night, 2 white guys were robbed just outside our Bourbon Street windows by some black punk--and yet we were totally unaware of the incident until we read the police report 2 days later. This is one time where the patrol cars with blue lights flashing--which we've seen a lot of lately--didn't get the job done.

The robbery occurred at 11:15 p.m. in the 1300 block of Bourbon Street when the thug pulled a pistol and demanded the victims' money, which they surrendered. The robber hopped into a car parked on Esplanade Avenue which then sped off, turning on Chartres Street through the Marigny Triangle. The vehicle was described only as tan in color. Police are looking for video surveillance tapes in the area which might have recorded the incident.

The perp was described as 20 to 25 years old, 5'8" tall, weighing 150 pounds with a thin build, dark complexion, and wearing a black hoodie and blue jeans.

Wondering if victims raising a ruckus while being robbed might help, Maj. Edwin Hosli, commander of the 8th District, advised against it: "Once the perpetrator leaves and the victim is no longer in immediate danger, they can yell or do anything they can to get attention. If someone is pointing a gun at you, I would not suggest screaming; the property taken is not worth a life."

Each case is different. There have been cases where the victims essentially told would-be robbers to go to hell and they did. But I remember one case from a few years back (at Barracks and Burgundy streets, I believe) where the wife and daughter of a guy being robbed start screaming, so the nervous robber gut shot the man several times.

So judge the situation wisely. As much as I would like to see a few victims blow away a few bad guys to send a message, if you're armed, don't try to cowboy it and think you can outdraw a guy who's high on drugs and is already pointing his piece at you.

As for me, I'm tired of this crap. If I see a black guy wearing a hoodie slinking through the neighborhood (and he's not wearing a McDonogh 15 uniform), I'm calling the cops.

The 911 operator will ask you if they're armed; I'll tell her I don't know, but I think they might be. Let the cops sort it out.

Remember, the cops can't stop suspicious characters without cause for fear of profiling, but you can create the cause by calling 911.

More robberies: Not many, but even one is too damn many in the French Quarter:

• Friday (11.13.09) 10:12 p.m.: A white woman walking in the 700 block of Bourbon Street (between Orleans Avenue and St. Ann Street) had her cellphone snatched from her grasp by a black guy who fled on St. Ann toward N. Rampart Street.

He was described as in his 30's, 5'9" tall, weighing 160 pounds, wearing a gray sweater and gray pants.

• Saturday (11.14.09) 3:30 a.m.: A white man walking in the 300 block of Burgundy Street (between Bienville and Conti streets) was robbed by 2 black boys armed with pistols. They fled on foot on Bienville toward N. Rampart Street.

They were described as 16 to 18 years old, one 5'11" tall, weighing 150 pounds, with short hair and a brown complexion, wearing a dark hoodie; the other 5'8" tall, weighing 140 pounds, short hair and a brown complexion, wearing a navy blue fleece jacket.

Again, it begs the question of why officers on patrol didn't notice these young punks roaming the French Quarter at that hour and pick them up on curfew violations?

• Saturday (11.14.09) 9:06 p.m.: Police arrested Brian Thompson, 47, when he attempted to flee after allegedly grabbing money from the hand of a white guy in the 800 block of Iberville Street (between Bourbon and Dauphine streets).

He was charged with simple battery and simple robbery and is in OPP on $30,000 bond.

But who's going to be police chief?: Now that the mayoral candidates are coming out of the woodwork, it's time to start asking each of them who they will appoint as police superintendent.

Since Big Chief Riley has said he will leave the post (yaaay!) the day Mayor Nagin does when the new mayor is sworn in, it's a decision that will need to be made as soon as we have a real mayor.

Ask the candidates and demand an answer. Don't be blown off by the old bromide "We'll conduct a search for the best possible person." That's hogwash--if they don't know who they'll name, they haven't thought about the crime problem enough.

I'd be more inclined to vote for a candidate based on who he favors for police chief than what he says he'll do for the city. After all, we got by for 8 years without a mayor who could carry his weight, but if we're going to make the city safe again, we need a dynamic police chief.

The mayoral candidates should be familiar with the names of:

• Ronnie Serpas, former NOPD chief of operations and now chief of police in Nashville;
• Cathy Lanier, one tough cop who's chief of the Washington, D.C. police department;
• Edward A. Flynn, who's made a dent in Milwaukee's crime as chief there;
• James Bernazzani, hard-nosed former head of the FBI here who cares greatly for the city;
• NOPD possibilities: They should be well acquainted with Marlon Defillo, Jeff Winn, and Louis Dabdoub.

Here are the candidates' email addresses or webpages (you'll have to look for links there to query the candidate--some have them, some don't)--pester them until you get answer that has a first name and last name:

• Rob Couhig: http://couhig2010.com
  
• John Georges: http://georgesformayor.com
• Troy Henry: www.troyhenry.com
• Leslie Jacobs: info@lesliejacobsformayor.com
• Ed Murray: talktome@edmurrayformayor.com
  
• James Perry: www.jamesperry2010.com
• Nadine Ramsey: http://nadineramsey.net

Invest some time in this--and if you like the candidate's answer, send them a few bucks for their campaign. We certainly don't want to go another 8 years with crime on a rampage and incompetent leadership that will ignore it.

Speaking of Riley leaving: Do you think he'll give us an "honorable explanation" of what happened to that $19,000 (and maybe millions) that disappeared from the NOPD's evidence room. We're still waiting to hear from Dollar Bill Jefferson about his cold, hard cash.

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As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome at NOcrimeline@gmail.com

Thom Kahler

Pursesnatcher a murderer?

We warned you: There's no such thing as a "minor" crime. Remember when we told you about a couple of black boys who invaded the French Quarter and attacked an Asian woman, taking her wallet in the middle of the afternoon on Toulouse Street back in early September?

8th District cops almost immediately nabbed Steve Hollins (top), 18, and Darrien Johnson (below), 17, and charged both with pursesnatching. But these weren't just bad boys on a lark. Hollins was wearing an ankle bracelet to monitor his movements after Magistrate Gerard Hansen let him out after he was arrested in April for "unauthorized use of a moveable" (read "auto theft") and illegal possession of a stolen auto. (The DA later refused to prosecute him on either charge.)

Hollins was probably wearing that ankle monitor when he and 2 accomplices allegedly gunned down 2 teenage black boys in New Orleans East in August--almost exactly one month before the pursesnatching escapade in the Quarter.

In that shootout in the late afternoon, a 13-year-old boy was shot in the back and a 16-year-old boy was shot in the leg, both left lying in the street to die. Neighbors called EMS and both were taken by ambulance to the hospital. Their current condition is unknown, but they must have survived--charges against their alleged assailants is attempted first-degree murder.

But the arrest on the pursesnatching charge was apparently the link that led to the arrest of the suspected shootes. After Hollins was locked up on the pursesnatching charge on 9.8.09, his buddy Jereamy Hills (right), 18, was locked up for attempted murder 2 days later. Hollins was charged on 9.13.09. The third suspect, Denzel Dimes (left), only 15 but being tried as an adult, was booked 10.30.09.

Each was charged with 2 counts of attempted first-degree murder and are being held in OPP on $250,000 bond each.

They're mobile, they're armed, and they're dangerous--and they don't belong in the French Quarter.

Blue lights thwarting crime?: Since the 12-hour mandatory shifts for patrol officers ended a couple of weeks ago, I've noticed more cop cars patrolling the Quarter with blue light flashing than ever before. Still, there have been a few robberies:

• Thursday (10.29.09) 11 p.m.: A white woman walking near Bienville and Royal streets was grabbed from behind by 2 black guys. They stuck something in her back and demanded her purse. She gave it up and they fled on foot.

Apparently it was no big deal to her--she didn't report it until 4 days later. And then the only description she could give of the robbers: They were wearing baseball caps.

• Tuesday (11.3.09) 12:45 a.m.: A Hispanic man walking near Bienville and N. Rampart streets was accosted by 2 black dudes who snatched a gold chain from the victim's neck. They fled in a dark-colored Chevy Trailblazer on Bienville toward N. Rampart.

The robbers were both described as 21 to 25 years old, 5'8" tall, weighing 140 pounds, with ear-length dreadlocks, wearing white T-shirts and blue jeans.

• Sunday (11.8.09) 1:30 a.m.: A lone black gunman held up 3 white men and a white woman walking in the 800 block of Gov. Nicholls Street (between Bourbon and Dauphine streets--not far from where a bartender was murdered in January). His gun did the talking and they gave up the money he demanded before they fled toward Bourbon Street.

The robber was described as 25 to 30 years old, 6' tall, weighing 185 pounds, with a medium complexion and hair in short twists, and wearing a dark gray sweatshirt and blue jeans.

• Thursday (11.12.09) 9:55 p.m.: A white guy using the restroom at McDonald's in the 700 block of Canal Street was accosted by a black guy who demanded money. When the victim refused, the attacker allegedly tried to choke him before fleeing. Officers who responded to the call arrested Lionel Foster, 39, and charged him with attempted simple robbery and simple battery.
  

More to this than we thought: It still seems strange someone could be attacked in Harrah's Casino, but it was more serious than first thought.

On 10.24.09, a fat black woman came up behind an Asian woman playing video poker around 11 p.m. and pulled out a multi-purpose tool with a blade and demanded the woman's money. A struggle ensued and as the 2 crashed to the floor, the victim was cut on her neck and had to be transported to University Hospital.

The casino's surveillance cameras helped 8th District detectives identify a suspect, whose picture is being shown in a photo line-up to witnesses. She was described as being 5'8" tall and weighing 250 pounds, wearing a green and black shirt, a black jacket and black jeans.

When she is arrested, she will be charged with attempted armed robbery and attempted murder.

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As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome at NOcrimeline@gmail.com

Thom Kahler