Decatur Police Provide Details on Recent Crime Activity at Community Meeting
Decatur Metro | July 9, 2013
UPDATE: Fox5 also covered the meeting – which includes part of some opening remarks from Mayor Pro-Tem Cunningham – in a segment that you can view HERE.
The Decatur Police Department spoke to a packed room of around 130 people at the Oakhurst Neighborhood Association meeting last night to discuss the recent increase in crime in the city and surrounding area. Keith summarized the meeting thusly in a comment last night…
…it was a very good session. With representatives there from APD, Decatur, and Dekalb I came away with the feeling that they truly are working together and that it is a strong working relationship.Chief Booker kicked things off and then Detective (I think) Richards who heads up criminal investigations spoke about the number of events. Then Sgt. Jennifer Ross gave us some details on the robberies before Deputy Chief Lee explained what they were doing about everything. It sounds like most of the juveniles involved in the crimes are from Zone 6 in Atlanta and mostly from right up Hosea a half mile or so from the police station. Sounds like they have lots of intelligence and so far they are not releasing sketches from the robberies because they think they have enough without making them public. It they hit a roadblock, then they’ll go ahead and release sketches to get some help from the public.
Patch also reported that the police said at the meeting that they “had some strong leads and hope to make arrests soon”. Also discussed at the meeting was the resurrection of the Oakhurst Owls community watch program, which has been inactive for several years.
DPD posted the above video message from Decatur PD Chief Mike Booker on YouTube yesterday.
Latest from Decaturish
Glad to hear the meeting went well and that DPD represented well, as usual. (Anyone who expects less either hasn’t lived here very long or hasn’t had occasion to learn how able our police department is.) In addition to very good schools, our tax dollars buy us excellent public safety operations.
The APD and Dekalb officers were equally impressive and represented their departments well. Another example of their working together is that APD is turning over the fingerprint data to Decatur to process and APD is handling the ballistics work. All of that collaboration is intended to speed the process without depending solely on GBI and their typicaly long lead times.
This is fantastic to hear. I’m not used to great cross-jurisdictional sharing among metro agencies; glad law enforcement can pull it off successfully.
Captain Scott Richards is in fact Commander of the CID.
Thanks. I knew I didn’t quite have his role correct.
Great meeting. I am glad to see the interest in the return of the neighborhood watch program. The key takeaway for me was that if something doesn’t look right you need to report it and let the police investigate.
Can anyone tell me where the temporary home of the Decatur Police Dept. is located? Thanks.
The main location is the ground floor of the Wells Fargo building on N Candler. The 911 Center is behind Big Peach Running Co. on E Trinity. Municipal Court is in the Callaway Building.
In terms of the advice to drive to a police station if you are being followed by a suspicious vehicle, i.e. to avoid a carjacking, where should one drive? Where are all the police cars and officers located, as in will hear you if you drive up flashing your lights and honking your horn for help?
This was discussed a few days ago in the Sycamore Ave carjacking thread. An alternative would be to go to a populated, well lit, place like a gas station. If it’s daytime, you might try a fire station also.
Sorry, I meant should one drive to the Wells Fargo or the Big Peach locations if one wants to get the attention of DPD. Or is driving to a police station not a good option during the renovation? Just trying to have a few good options in mind if driving in the City. There’s no open gas stations at night, are there? Or is the one at Columbia and College open all night?
Regarding the Sycamore carjacking, am I correct that the victim was followed after leaving a bar late at night? I don’t know if this has already been discussed, but wonder if the thieves took the bar/drinking into account. If you’re leaving a bar at 3 a.m., you’ve probably had a few drinks and wouldn’t necessarily want to draw police attention to yourself.
Or maybe I’m just overthinking this.
I am positive that leaving a bar at 3 AM in a metro area puts you at risk for all sorts of reasons. And yup, that would be a toughie–showing up at a police station, horn blaring, with an unknown blood alcohol level!
I would think that driving to a QuickTrip would be just as effective and usually easier to find. They’re well lit, almost always have several people around, have lots of video cameras, and there is often a police officer there (no, that isn’t meant as a knock). The closest ones to Decatur, however, are on Scott Blvd. and I guess the one on Briarcliff. Depending on the time, the best bet in Decatur might be to simply drive to the square near the MARTA station, as there are frequently police in that area.
See, now y’all miss the 24-hour Decatur Diner, dontcha?
No, but I do wish there was at least one 24 hour business in Decatur.
How about the Marriott?
+10
Waffle House FTW
thanks!
Ok, I’ve got a plan. Late at night, if north of town, head to the QT by North DeKalb mall; if downtown, head to the Marriott or MARTA station; either way, honk horn and flash lights. If on south side of Decatur? Where are all those homes with guns and guys willing to use them?
During the daytime, there’s also the gas stations at N. Decatur and Clairemont or Scott and at Columbia and College, plus Pure (except on Sunday).
APD Zone 6 station is in downtown Kirkwood. Also, I think the BP at 2nd/Glenwood is open 24 hrs.
Personally, I wouldn’t hesitate to wake up a fire station if I thought I was in urgent trouble and they were the closest resource.
Perfect. And with Rick Julian’s suggestion of Waffle House (Avondale), I’ve got all the quadrants covered!
The firefighters probably wouldn’t mind being awakened for such an emergency, the problem is, at least in Decatur, they sleep in the back of the building and may not hear a horn blowing out front. The alternative is to get out of your car and ring the doorbell, but that sort of defeats the purpose.
Of course, you could always call 911 while you’re driving and tell them you’re going to some known location (like a fire station) to meet the police there. In Decatur, the police are likely to get there before you.
Also could try the Emergency Department at Dekalb Medical or Emory. Both have plenty of people 24 hours, including in-house security.
Dekalb Medical is a good one, should have thought of that.
Yes!!!! We all should have thought of that. If you drive up to an ER with horn blasting, a bunch of personnel will definitely run including security. Of course, they’ll think you’re having a baby but I like a little humor along with my crime.
There’s also Agnes Scott police on s. Mcdonough
Is the Exxon Station at Memorial and Candler a 24 hour operation? The DeKalb South precinct is further down Candler.
Fox news finally proves it’s only a rumor that Deputy Chief Keith Lee and Keith F are the same person as both are captured together in a single shot.
http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/story/22783598/decatur-meetings-fighting-back
Be warned…you have to sit through a Neil Flit commercial before watching the video.
“Been hit? Call Neil Flit!”
Or, become proficient with a weapon or other means of self defense in case you you don’t get somewhere “safe.”
No question in my mind that neither I nor the world is safer with a gun in my klutzy hands. You know all those stories about victims whose weapons are used against them……that would be me. Or I’d be going “Wait, wait, I’ve got something here in my purse somewhere, no that’s the remote to DVD player, that’s a jump rope handle, maybe I put in the pool bag, or did my husband borrow it last night when going to practice at Oakhurst Park, wait, it’s got to be here somewhere…..”
So I can totally stalk you now that I know who you are. HEHHEHE
Keisha looked awesome. She my fellow Scottie.
One question/answer sticks out in my mind from last night.
Concerned citizen: “In any of these break-ins did having a dog seem to detract the criminals.”
Sgt Ross: “Mmm, no. They were all little dogs. But what we feel is a related robbery in Kirkwood, the victim was walking a pit bull. And that victim was shot.”
Discuss…
Did anyone ask if any of the crime victims were armed or had a gun nearby? I suspect that it’s tough to outdraw an armed perp who comes up behind you. Works better in movies.
+1. Whenever I have considered owning a weapon, my thinking has gone down those lines and I’ve thought no further. I rented for awhile in Inman Park when it still had lots of drug dealers and occasional shootings, even a murder of a MARTA station patron. I couldn’t imagine myself winning a gun battle on the street or in the yard. Perhaps it would be different if I was inside my home, upstairs sleeping, and heard someone breaking down the back door. There’s the recent story of the lady hiding in her closet with her children and shooting the intruder when he opened the closet door. But with my luck, the gun would be downstairs. Plus I still believe in the Academy of Pediatrics recommendation to keep guns locked away from children. What do I do? Wear the key around my neck at all times?
There are safes designed to be opened with your fingerprints. A loaded weapon kept in one of those safes is a good solution for those with children.
Who knew? Dang, I always learn something new on DM. My fingerprint is one of the few things I can’t lose.
Completely respect your choice not to own a gun for self-defense and also your previous comments about knowing whether guns are present in households where your kids visit and if so, how they’re stored. At the same time, a few thoughts…
Any responsible gun owner knows that luck doesn’t pertain, when it comes to knowing where the gun is at all times. Having one in the house (or the car or on the boat or wherever) means keeping where you mean to use it and knowing where that is, and also knowing whether or not it’s loaded.
As for keeping guns secured from children, makes perfect sense on the face of it. I can’t imagine it hasn’t saved countless children’s lives. Then again, I grew up in a house with at least 2-3 unloaded shotguns on the wall (and at times, 1-2 leaning in a corner or in a closet–sometimes my father & his hunting buddies would swap guns back and forth, trying out different ones), a loaded .22 pistol in the glove compartment (mostly for killing snakes) and a loaded .38 in my father’s nightstand drawer specifically for protection. I can’t remember not having total respect for guns and can’t imagine meddling with any of them without permission. As children, we simply understood that a gun was dangerous for us to handle until we were big enough, like a sharp knife. Guns were not romanticized at all for us, they were just another tool in life that the grown-ups took care of. And when we were old enough–probably starting in our tweens–we were taught to use them as a matter of course, in case we ever needed to.
So, on the one hand, I can’t mount an argument against securing guns from children. On the other hand, I have to wonder if you need a padlock to keep your children from meddling where they seriously shouldn’t, then (1) best not to think you’re gonna use the gun for personal protection while in the house, and (2) maybe it’s time to crack down across the board.
I’m sure this will elicit all kinds of flaming responses, but whatever. I’m moving, this is one of my last soapbox sessions!
Can’t you still post here if you move? Please don’t feel like you don’t belong.
Re firearm ownership: I just don’t have the right inclinations, skills, or priorities for it. If Decatur evolved such that I didn’t feel safe without an unlocked gun, I’d move. Owning a gun would be one more unavoidable responsibility and worry like car maintenance, gutter cleaning, and taxes.
I think if I hadn’t grown up with guns and also used them professionally (doing fieldwork in wilderness areas), I’d feel the same way.
It’s not a matter of feeling I don’t belong, it’s more about bandwidth and investing time & energy engaging with my new community. I have no plans to cut ties with Decatur.
I hate to get mushy, but I hope you’ll continue to post. You definitely keep it interesting around here.
Don’t leave STG!!
You keep this place fair & balanced, and definitely not in a FoxNews kind of way!
Daydreamer & Curious: those are the nicest things you could say, IMO. Thank you.
if/when Hall of Fame time comes, I would/will nominate you for this
dm 2012/11/13/planning-commission-takes-up-rezoning-of-west-college-parcel-this-evening/#comment-319231
best
thx
Well then its good news that we have allot of movies filming in Decatur!
Of course, I don’t know how well the protagonists from Endless Love will do at fighting off muggers.
A gun is just a tool. Sometimes it’s the right tool to use and sometimes it is better left in the tool box. If somone came up behind me and stayed behind me, I would be reluctant to pull out a gun if I had one. If someone is in front of me pointing a pistol and demanding my wallet, I may have more options especially if my carry weapon of choice is in my front pocket sitting exactly where the robber is telling me to reach. I personally think it’s a bad idea for me to assume that someone pointing a gun at me isn’t going to shoot me no matter what I do. They are, after all, demonstrating at that very point in time that they don’t know how to make good decisions.
I remember seeing that they were able to track one stolen iPhone to SW Atlanta–did anything come from that?
Also I was in Intown Hardware this morning and overheard them talking about car key copies that had chips in them that you could track (they can make them for $75 apparently) Wondering if that would do much good?
That’s an interesting idea.
I don’t think the thieves are using keys to steal the cars.
Well…in a carjacking…right?
You would think the keys would be in the cars then. Sorry, I was only thinking about the numerous unoccupied cars that are being stolen.