Crime in Charlotte

[f0xym0p]

That's terrible. I hate to hear this kind of thing happening. Especially by some low life rapist coward. Well, by shooting the cop (and assuming the cop dies), the rapist just gave himself the death penalty. Fry his A$$!

I know, he's crazy. He would have probably gotten some small sentence for rape but now he'll get life in prison or the death penalty.

[DigitalSky]

I'm hearing they locked down 52 schools because of this

[dubone]

It is really quite sad when policemen get shot and/or killed. It is just some guy going to his job trying to improve the safety for everyone.

[f0xym0p]

I'm hearing they locked down 52 schools because of this

Actually the Observer says that students from 52 schools are affected but only the two closest schools are on lockdown. The buses won't be able to take kids home who live in the blocked off areas. I would assume there are at least a few places between the blocked off areas of Harris Blvd. that don't have alternate routes so people are just stuck there until the blockade is over.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/new...ws/14271043.htm

I agree with you, dubone, especially in this case--the officer was just serving a warrant. I'm sure he didn't anticipate it being dangerous.

[ellifyno]

Actually the Observer says that students from 52 schools are affected but only the two closest schools are on lockdown. The buses won't be able to take kids home who live in the blocked off areas. I would assume there are at least a few places between the blocked off areas of Harris Blvd. that don't have alternate routes so people are just stuck there until the blockade is over.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/new...ws/14271043.htm

I agree with you, dubone, especially in this case--the officer was just serving a warrant. I'm sure he didn't anticipate it being dangerous.

The neighborhood in which this occurred is one of those neighborhoods that has no other access. Those people are definitely being told that they can't leave. People trying to go home aren't being allowed to. There are cars parked all over the sides of Harris, Mallard Creek, Sugar Creek, and David Cox, as well as through some of the neighborhoods and some of the nearby parking lots. The apartment complex next to the neighborhood also has no other access, nor does the subdivision next to it. Such are the joys of living off of a road like Harris, where connectivity is hard to come by. People on the southern side of Harris and west of the street where this happened are able to get into their neighborhoods through a back entrance off of Sugar Creek. People on that side of Harris, but east of the situation (closer to Mallard Creek), are able to get in through an entrance off of Mallard Creek.

As far as the schools go, I think that was probably a miscommunication (or an example of idiocy in the local media). They're still reporting on the radio that 52 schools are locked down. I thought that seemed a little excessive, especially if the guy's barricaded himself inside. Fifty-two schools having affected students makes a lot more sense.

My thoughts and prayers continue to be with the officer and his family.

[DigitalSky]

They say the CMPD officer is expected to recover, so some good news there.

[redjeep77]

that's awesome news....i just assumed the worst when it said that he had been shot in the head.

and on another note, i take back my opinion about him getting the death penalty. To think this, i assumed that the rapist would make it to court alive. But since he shot the cop, there is no way in hell he's getting out of that building alive. Cops just don't let stuff like this fly. Either way, the rapist threw his life away.

[Miesian Corners]

Got the following via my UNCC email addy this morning:

This Campus Crime Alert is issued by UNC Charlotte Police and Public

Safety.

Early Thursday morning at 3:13 a.m. April 6, 2006 an Armed Robbery was

reported to the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. A Robbery

occurred on Suther Road near University City Boulevard (off campus). A

UNC Charlotte Student (while walking from campus to his off campus

residence) was approached by three to five armed black males wearing

masks. One of the suspects struck the victim in the forehead with a

handgun, stole his wallet, book bag, and then shot him in the leg. The

suspects then fled on foot. The suspects have not been located at this

time. The Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department is investigating.

The UNC Charlotte Police and Public Safety department is issuing this

bulletin to inform the University Community of this incident to

increase awareness and safety.

Please report any suspicious activity to our Police dispatcher

704-687-2200. You may also call the Police dispatcher at night for

on-campus escorts or assistance from any of the 200 blue light phones.

UNC Charlotte

Police & Public Safety

[f0xym0p]

Yikes! It wasn't enough just to knock him out with the gun to the head, they had to shoot him in the leg, too? They probably got at most $20 from that.

Lots of students live over there. It's really unfortunate that they can't feel safe walking to/from school.

[voyager12]

I don't think this robbery is indicative of a bad crime problem in the area. Walking by yourself late at night in any city or school is a risky proposition. My school, The College fo Charleston, offered rides by campus police when students studied late and placed panic buttons throughout the campus. Perhaps UNCC can invest in more security.

[Charlotteman]

My sister lives in Charlotte and speaks frequently about the crime problem. I would call it a CRISIS!

Isn't the safety of the citizenry the most important issue? Why isn't something dramatic done--like hiring LOTS more police officers? It will cost a fortune yes, but what about the people who are shot for $20?

Make the penalties for these kinds of crimes so severe, that the criminals will be locked up a long time.

Someone in an earlier post mentioned that it was probably not safe for a woman to walk alone at night in any American city. When I first moved to Seattle I just couldn't believe my eyes when I saw women walking alone in complete safety downtown at 2 AM, or in any residential neighborhoods. Alone. No probs.

My female coworkers all walked home after work at 11 PM, and they all lived in inner city neighborhoods. Walked alone.

In fact there is no place in this entire region known to me, that a woman could not walk alone in the middle of the night in complete safety~let alone a man!

Hard to believe but the 100% truth.

[peaceloveunderstanding]

I don't think this robbery is indicative of a bad crime problem in the area. Walking by yourself late at night in any city or school is a risky proposition. My school, The College fo Charleston, offered rides by campus police when students studied late and placed panic buttons throughout the campus. Perhaps UNCC can invest in more security.

UNC Charlotte has those features too, the on campus crime rate (as reported) is lower than other colleges in NC.

That said, the biggest crime problem in University City area is car theft: items from the cars and the cars themselves. If your not a car, you likely won't have a problem.

About hiring police officers, I've never understood how that's done. There only so many potential police in Charlotte, do we go and recruit them from other cities?

[monsoon]

There is a low income housing complex next to UNCC where a lot of violent crime gets traced back to. There have been murders, robberies, car thiefts, etc etc, that were done by people who were staying at that complex but were not supposed to be living there.

[peaceloveunderstanding]

Where exactly is that?

[Charlotteman]

I am curious to know what is Charlotte's highest crime neighborhood.

When I lived in the area years ago, the Bellhaven Blvd. area around the University was the most dangerous.

[voyager12]

Just a guess...but I would put my money on somewhere in West Charlotte.

[MZT]

"West Charlotte" is really more like "Northwest Charlotte" as far as dangerous neighborhoods go. From Wilkinson, sweeping clockwise towards Graham road on the east side of 77. This is where most of the shootings and apartment robberies are reported on the news.

[InitialD]

Where exactly is that?

My front door. Come over and visit if you enjoy being held up at gunpoint at your front door. I am in the process of moving to Charlotte and I am staying in University Terror condos for the next month until we get our own place somewhere a little safer. Seriously, I have felt safer in the slums of Kingston, Jamaica than I do here.

[peaceloveunderstanding]

Oh yea, those are pretty bad - all of the apartments around UC are pretty bad.

[monsoon]

It's also scary that a number of home invasions have occured in the last few weeks.

[Matthew.Brendan]

Steven Green, a 21 year old discharged from the Army because of a 'personality disorder' was arrested in Marion, northwest of Charlotte in connection with the murder of an Iraqi family, including a 5 year old girl and the rape of her 14 year old sister.

http://www.forbes.com/business/energy/feed.../ap2856413.html

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=...tnG=Search+News

[mcashlv]

Cime in America is caused by "certain people". Can't face reality? Then reality will soon be facing you--with a loaded gun.

Hi, everyone. Last night, my car was stolen. I can't believe I've lived in L.A., Atlanta, Seattle.. Just about any large city you can name and my car gets stolen in Charlotte. (This has never happened to me before..) My question (or rather, questions): Is crime getting really bad in Charlotte? I live near Uptown, so I assume there is some crime here. But the more I talk to people about this, the more I realize it's a constant problem. I've spoken to friends all over Charlotte who've had their cars stolen or broken into or vandalized. This of course doesn't take into account violent crime, which appears to be increasing. What is going on here? Have the police announced a plan to do something other than stopping teenagers from going Uptown? If this had happened in Atlanta, I could chalk it up to the fact that the police dept. there is totally incompetent. I thought the police dept. in Charlotte was better... Are things going to continue down this path? Should I pack up and move to the :choke: suburbs?

I guess I'll go cry some more now.

[Jerseyman4]

During my 4 day stay in Charlotte, i was hearing about break-ins and other sorts of crime along Randolph Road (WSOC-TV where else?) but it didnt deter me from going out at all.

[krazeeboi]

Cime in America is caused by "certain people".

Right--criminals.

[cinco]

i had a very scary commute home this afternoon (5:30ish). while i was driving in the right hand lane of 277 - a gold/champagne colored mercedes pulled out from the independence blvd split into my lane. i slammed on the brakes and had to go off the road in order to miss them. i was able to control the car and get back on the road.... behind the mercedes. i was amazed to see the occupants in the car looking back and laughing and 2 of them giving me the finger. the occupants were 4 african americans, 2 boys up front and 2 girls in the back... i say boys & girls b/c they did not look a day over 14 yrs old.

my normal route home takes me down n. davidson, so i made that exit, even though the mercedes did as well - in front of me. the mercedes made a jerking turn towards the exit, almost causing another accident. @ this point i decided to call 911. i was in traffic right behind the mercedes but giving myself @ least 2 car lengths inbetween. i began to give the 911 operator all the details. the make & model, occupant descriptions, and the tag # (which BTW was a 30 day tag). they turned onto n. davidson as did i. after crossing the railroad tracks they made their first right onto a street that only connected them to the following street, which i turned onto only to stop and give the 911 operator the name of the street (which was belmont)... the mercedes turned off onto belmont heading away from myself and n. davidson. @ this point i had no intentions of following them and was @ least a football field's length away from them... i was stopped. then, while i was still on the phone, i saw the passenger male lean out of the window and fire a gun towards me. i f'ing kid you not. i ducked down and told the operator that one of them and just shot @ me.... she asked if i was hit... luckily i wasn't. she told me to go the opposite way and had the cops dispatched in "numbers". i was frazzled and just wanted to get home @ that point. i hadn't been hit and told her to not worry about sending an officer to me...but to find these seriously dangerous kids.

while this incident has me pondering many things. i learned a valuable lesson. while aware of how sketchy the situation was... i shouldn't have pulled off of n. davidson (where there was plenty of traffic) onto belmont. they thought i was following them.... and i honestly i shouldn't have ever gotten behind them... but i wanted to stop them, knowing they were going to hurt someone with their reckless driving. i NEVER really expected someone to be stupid/evil/desperate enough to shoot @ me. crazy.