Some residents of Rochester’s South Wedge are forming an anti-crime group to address what they say is poor police response and follow-through, as well as a failure by the local media to report the truth about crime in their neighborhood.
“The people of the South Wedge are left with little recourse or remedy except to organize among ourselves, to track and monitor the frequency and location of violent assaults on our streets, take measures to protect ourselves and, finally, to devise measures that would help prevent their occurrence,” says an invitation to the group’s first meeting.
The meeting is later this week.
Statistics provided by the Rochester Police Department do not show a surge in what are called “part I crimes,” such as murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. The South Wedge has had three rapes so far this year, 23 robberies, three incidents of aggravated assault, and 20 burglaries.
The RPD provided statistics covering a five-year period, and the 2013 year-to-date figures are in line with previous years, going back to 2008. The exception is burglaries; there were 60 in total last year.
But one of the organizers of the South Wedge group says that there’s suspicion that the numbers are underreported. And the group seems to be responding to anecdotal reports of assaults and other confrontations.
“Personally, I’m afraid to walk home alone at night,” says Wendy Painting, a group facilitator. “We want to know what we can do. I don’t know if the answer is to drop more cops on the street. I don’t know if the answer is to put more cameras on the street. I almost think it’s not. But information would go a long way.”
This article appears in Oct 23-29, 2013.
I live up the hill from the South Wedge and may be interested in attending the meeting. Can you update with specifics of when and where the meeting will be held? Thanks.
LovetheRoc,
The meeting is not open to the public; this is a very early, planning meeting. I left out the location so people wouldn’t be tempted to show up anyway.
Thanks, Christine. Totally understand. Look forward to hearing more about this and the progress the group makes – I also agree that that park at the corner of Alexander and South has become a trouble spot and prized location for people hanging out and drinking.
I would love to be a part of this. My partner and I bought a house in the heart of the Wedge and I would like to help keep it safe.
I live in the South Wedge and my partner owns a bar in the area. I have recently been victim to car vandalisms, car break in, and home robbery. We’d like to be involved in any planning to make our neighborhood a safe place.
What Rochester needs (as does Buffalo, where I now live) is to have police patrols on foot in these neighborhoods. Driving around in police cars does nothing to prevent crime; it is only a resource that allows the police to respond quicker.