Crime?

[kebler62]

I have a dilemma.

I've done my research on the neighborhood. I fell in love with the community. The "annual croquet tourneys," the dog-friendly-areas, and the number of students and professors all convinced me that this area was the right fit for me. However, the rest of my research brought up less favorable results. Listing after listing, post after post, referenced the widespread crime in the area. I've found an amazing place, but I'm honestly torn. I understand that, unfortunately, crime is prevalent in every major city--BC is not immune. I'd just like to feel safe enough to be comfortable with my decision to call BC home.

I'd like some honest opinions. Please, try to keep bias (from either side of the spectrum) to a minimum.

1.) As a woman, without a dog, how safe is it to walk alone at nite--even if it's just from the car to the door?

2.) On average, how many crimes--from petty theft, to violent crime, to an "outsiders" drug use--have you witnessed or been affected by personally during the past year?

3.) If this area is such a strong community--one that does not want to be scared away by the crime--how come the streets are typically deserted? Seeing someone sitting on a stoop seems to be a rarity in BC, unlike a lot of other neighborhoods in the city.

4.) What measures is the community taking to prevent crime? Are you pursuing action regularly or merely city petitions and repetitive calls to 311? What can I do to help protect myself and my neighbors (We already have a home security system)?

I'd appreciate any honest opinion I can get. I've read the Baltimore Police statistics, but I'd like a human perspective...

I'm not one to be deterred--I've perfected the "angry dis-concerned stare" that's necessary for living in some cities in order to be bothered--but I'd like this not to be the kinda place for the b*tch stare... Is that possible here?

[Carol Ott]

Not sure how unbiased I can be, since I have lived here 7 years, but here goes.

1. I am a woman with a small child, I do not own a dog, and I walk around the neighborhood. That's why I moved to the city -- so I can walk around at night. The suburbs freak me out.

2. I see quite a bit of petty crime, and have experienced two break-ins (resulting in nothing being taken) in the time I've lived here. This is part of city living.

3. I'm outside all the time. I sit on my stoop when the mosquitos aren't eating me alive, and I go for evening walks all through Pigtown. I do, however, agree with your assessment...and it's equally as puzzling to me.

4. I don't know the answer to this one.

[streetchie]

These are all really great questions.

1. As a man, I am always VERY careful walking around at night and always keep pepper spray handy. I had one problem about a year ago (someone tried to rob me (of beer) in broad daylight) but both perps were maced and caught and I pressed full charges. Be careful on the street anywhere, anytime in all of Baltimore.

2. I've been very lucky with regard to petty crime. I've never had any problems at my home, although I did have my car stereo stolen a few years back. Rule of thumb is don't leave anything in your car at all and don'tleave anything on your front step that's not tied down.

3. I sit on my stoop almost every night as do many others in the neighborhood. However, our area does not have the street scene of some other parts of Baltimore, yet.

4. I call 311 and/or 911 whenever I see anything happening in the area. They don't always make it out in a timely fashion, but I keep calling.

[fourknots]

1.) As a woman, without a dog, how safe is it to walk alone at nite--even if it's just from the car to the door?

I don't believe it is safe. My wife is a student at UM and would never walk home at night. When she would get a ride early in the morning, I would stand by the door until she got in the car. When she is dropped off at home at night, I meet her at the door. Maybe it's overkill, but I'd rather be safe.

2.) On average, how many crimes--from petty theft, to violent crime, to an "outsiders" drug use--have you witnessed or been affected by personally during the past year?

We've been here for a year almost. In that time, we've been burglarized, my teenage son was jumped and beaten with his friend, our cars have been vandalized five times, and my wife is ocassionally verbally assaulted while walking to and from school. We've had our gas grill stolen from the fenced back yard and had a brick thrown at our front door.

3.) If this area is such a strong community--one that does not want to be scared away by the crime--how come the streets are typically deserted? Seeing someone sitting on a stoop seems to be a rarity in BC, unlike a lot of other neighborhoods in the city.

I sit on the steps sometimes, but our house is more of a standalone and there are no next door neighbors to chat with. Few people on our block are out at night.

4.) What measures is the community taking to prevent crime? Are you pursuing action regularly or merely city petitions and repetitive calls to 311? What can I do to help protect myself and my neighbors (We already have a home security system)?

I'm convinced the crime problem will not get better until there are more police patrols and the courts (and juries) lock up the more serious criminals. I've been to the police dept meetings and there is nothing more than lip service being paid to complainers.

I'd appreciate any honest opinion I can get.

I think the entire area is up and coming. But it is a slow process and often there are several steps back to one forward. As houses are rehabbed, the area improves. But rehabs are hard to sell in areas that are prone to drugs and violence. My gut tells me that Washingtonn Village is much better off than some areas. But that doesn't make up for the fact that parts of it are still dangerous. I'm certain it is improving and in the future it will be one of the better neightborhoods.

I'm not one to be deterred--I've perfected the "angry dis-concerned stare" that's necessary for living in some cities in order to be bothered--but I'd like this not to be the kinda place for the b*tch stare... Is that possible here?

My wife has the stare down and uses it daily.

We came here for her to go to school. We knew the area had its issues and were prepared to deal with them. We even thought that we might find it a place to set down roots. But when school is out and we can sell our house, we will. Living in fear of being robbed, beaten, or the victim of random violence is not worth it to us.

I'm sure there are people on this board that will disagree and I respect their views. But this is how we feel. You wanted honest...

[Nicole]

I actually agree with much of what fourknots said - sometimes it just doesn't seem worth it. Other times I love living here.

Answers to your questions:

1.) I am a woman and I have an infant. I feel safer at night than during the day as most of the crime seems to happen during the day. But I definitely don't take leisurely walks at night without my husband and even then we are careful.

2.) Our house was robbed recently. Our tools were stolen off our back deck when a neighbor returned them a few months ago, and another time our new plants were stolen off our back deck (all during the day). We witness drug deals, public urination and defecation, and indecent exposure quite regularly.

3.) I don't know why more people aren't out. We are out quite a bit but our area is infested with mosquitoes so dusk is not a good time to be outside. I get eaten alive. I don't know why people can't even bother to put on their front light, so being out and about is a wild dream to me.

4.) I don't know what measures we are taking to prevent crime besides what you've read here. We notify the police of crimes in progress. The community has installed fencing and trimmed bushes where people can hide. We've cleaned up litter on our streets to avoid broken window syndrome. You can protect yourself by being alert, arming your alarm, and not leaving anything in plain view in your car. Things like that. I don't know what else to do.

I don't know if it's true but it feels like we had a surge in crime when the blue light cameras were installed down the street. Like crime got pushed to us.

[chemgirl]

I live on 800 block of W. Barre Street, behind the shopping center on the Washington/Barre St. corner. I've lived here for two years and I've lived in the city for four. I don't have as much perspective as the other people here, but that might be a good thing.

1. It is safe to walk from your car to your house, at least on my block. I've come to realize that the safety of Baltimore is really a block to block thing, and in the two years I've lived here, I've had normal people that just wanna say "Hi." on the streets. And you say "Hi" back. In suburbia, this does not happen and it's a steep learning curve to understand that this is normal, and not meant to be threatening.

2. One morning, we woke up to find my husband's windshield bashed in. This was definitely an accident, it's not as if anything was stolen. I think that most likely someone just threw something at his car by accident. That has been, knock on wood, the only thing that has happened to us. When we lived in Mt. Vernon, both of our cars were broken into each year, at least once. So, something like a broken windshield once per two years? A definite reduction in my eyes.

3. Um... that's because we have back yards?
Actually, try coming back in October, when the weather is a little cooler. I see my neighbors hang out on their stoops all the time, and love them! They also hang out in the back alleys, and when I walk through Sterett, I talk to them. It's really a matter of the weather and, of course, what your neighbors are like. Which leads me to 4...

4. We hang out with each other. We make our street presence known and we do not take things for granted. We call in suspicious activity. And most of all, we walk the streets and we have alarm systems activated and installed in our homes.

BC/Pigtown has a lot of the same problems, if not less, than the more affluent areas of Federal Hill and Canton. We have a problem with crime. We have a problem with safety. We have a problem with the fact that we no longer live in a bubble and that crime is here. Poverty is here. But unlike Canton and FH, we also have less noise, more families, and more parking. So that your walk home from you car is a lot shorter and possibly, safer.

[fourknots]

As a side note, I again wrote a letter to the BPD chief (Who I see has "resigned") complaining about crimes issues in the area. Officer Schultz, whom I've met before called to let us know the PD got my letter and was concerned. Very nice of him, but I was expecting the letter to be passed up the chain, not down. Officer Schultz was working 17 hours that day. He doesn't decide how to hire more cops, he's busy trying to make our neighborhood safe. He was also a bit defensive. He's doing the best he can, and besides, we don't have much violent crime in our neighborhood, was what he appeared to be saying. And compared to some, he is right. But that's no excuse for high crime.

In the end, it seems letters are read and responded to, but by the soldiers, not the generals. The soldiers should not be told they are not doing a good job if the generals don't give them the tools or troops they need.

[Carol Ott]

One thing that goes a long way in preventing crime -- get to know your neighbors and be friendly. Sounds simple, but apparently it bears repeating from time to time.

[Ryan]

Here's my take. Just to set this up, I've lived in the neighborhood for 7 years and am currently the Barre Circle Community Association President.

1) Within Barre Circle's confines, I'd have no problem having my wife walk alone at night. As someone already pointed out, most of our crimes happen during the day when no one is around. I'd guess after midnight when there is absolutely no one on the street, I might tell my wife not to walk. But, I'd probably do that no matter where we lived. I would not let my wife venture alone onto some of the street outside BC after 9:30pm or so.
2) This is a hard one because these past six months have been the absolute worst since I've lived here. I've only personally witnessed one thing in the past year. I saw a teenager stash some drugs in the back of one of our rear parks behind my home (we got him arrested and he's not been back). It's common for the dealers to send young kids to hide the drugs in nicer areas since they don't want the drugs on them and the users won't be able to find them.
3) Your not the first person to say this, but I never have really understood this comment because I see people together all the time. My guess is that "stoop-sitting" is lower in our neighborhood because we have such great parks behind all of our houses. Most of the parks, especially the one behind McHenry and MLK, have people in them conversing 24/7. I much rather be in a park then on my front steps.
4) This could be a long list, but the biggest action we have taken is to start a monthly COP walk. The first one is taking place on August 1st. You should join us!!! We have also started to attend the Southern District Community Relations meeting and now have cops (including the Southern District Major) regularly attending our meetings. After only two months, we're already on a first name basis with most of the big name cops and they are now directly aware of our problems. I'm not sure this was the case a few months back.

I love this message board. In fact, I suggested its creation at a meeting a few years ago, but I do hate the fact that it highlights many of the negative things that take place in our neighborhood. Like anything, people are more likely to come on here to complaining then to come on here to say something positive. There's just always more of a need to talk about the bad things then the good. I guess we wouldn’t be posting at all if we didn't care and love this place.

Just for the record, I’ve only had one crime committed against me in all my years here—three of my $15 patio chairs went missing one night (they left the forth!!!!). My new patio chairs are now locked down when not in use.