Dear PoPville – Surge in Burglaries in Mt Pleasant, Meeting Tonight

Photo by PoPville flickr user ewilfong

“Dear PoPville,

Have you heard about the epidemic of burglaries going on in MtP? It looks like today’s police community meeting will be interesting. Maybe you could help share info about the meeting? see below.

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An extraordinary surge of neighborhood burglaries that began in the summer has continued in recent weeks despite the implementation by MPD of a burglary action plan. 14 burglaries have occurred in the last month — 3 coming over the weekend.

I would strongly encourage others to raise this issue at the PSA 301 police meeting tonight, details at bottom. (I will try to attend, though I may be prevented by a work deadline.) At the last meeting, there were representatives of the mayor, Councilmember Graham, and several MPD officers, but just two residents, counting Jack. More than one person attending remarked about the absence of neighbors, and I detected a feeling that the lack of attendance correlated to a lack of concerns.

So, first, I think it would be useful for many residents to attend the meeting and to express to city and MPD representatives that security in the neighborhood is our paramount concern. Progress is far more likely if they all recognize our strong view that the current level of burglary and other crime is flat-out unacceptable.

Second, I think it’s appropriate to ask what exactly the MPD is doing to address this problem. The data show that this is an extraordinary wave of burglaries, and that calls for an extraordinary response. We were informed a couple of weeks ago that a burglary action plan of some sort has been put into effect. What does that plan consist of? Given the continuing surge of burglaries, it seems reasonable to conclude that additional steps are required. What are those steps?

Third, I think it would be useful to share with residents more information about how these burglaries are being committed. When I have asked the police for details, they have simply responded that there is no pattern. That may be the case, but I think we could benefit by knowing exactly how the crimes are being committed, as well as any identifying information about the suspects. That could help us anticipate and identify criminal activity. This information should be shared with everyone in the neighborhood — few of whom visit this website. How is that to be done?

Details for tonight’s meeting:
Metropolitan Police Department PSA 301 Community Meeting
Wednesday October 26, 2011
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
La Casa Community Center
3166 Mt. Pleasant Street, NW“