Often, a “ridealong” – when a civilian observer goes along with a police officer on patrol — can be uneventful. Not the ones that West Seattle-based author Michael Stusser writes about, vividly and compactly, including one from the Southwest Precinct; read his story here.
“Driving to the Southwest Precinct is scary as hell—people stumbling in the road and selling dime bags streetside. No wonder they put a police station down here.”
Seriously? This guy is a bit dramatic, I live up Delridge from the precinct and have never seen anything like what he describes here and I take personal offense to this made-up story. It made me question the rest of his tale.
I haven’t spoken to him personally, just sharing the link, but there is one street very close to the precinct where drug activity is often discussed at the Crime Prevention Council meetings – the north-south street that ends at the southern Home Depot entrance on Webster … it’s the street I always cut down when heading to the precinct, left turn off Holden — data point … TR
monstergirl your kidding right….if you dont see it you must be blind….
Monstergirl, I have witnessed on a couple occasions public smoking of crack in Greg Davis park. Every so often little baggies are left behind as well. Not sure why (whether more supply, or transient population) but drug use in the Cottage Grove area seems to spike for a week or so and then die down for a while.
Haha, it just had to be officer Chang didn’t it! Too funny. If you went to high school in West Seattle from the 90s – now…you know who Officer Chang is whether you got in trouble of not :) It is slightly humorous to hear someone speak of driving Delridge as being “scary as hell” I have to say. I know, I know…it is nowhere near the safest or prettiest neighborhood, but if you think it’s scary now…you have no clue what it used to be like. I grew up down the street from Greg Davis Park and played down there when it was nothing even resembling a park, sticker bushes and druggies. I’m pretty happy with how things are (very slowly) turning around down there. Still PLENTY of progress to be made and it would help if the cops actually came when you call (whole other issue), but I no longer feel the need to lock my door when I drive to my Mom’s house and I’m thankful for that.
That all sounds like a fun time, I wish my ridealong had been that exciting. I went on a ridealong on a Friday night @ SW precinct, I really learned a lot about how cops do their jobs and the discretion that’s involved. I recommend it to anyone who thinks they know anything about law enforcement or to any of those teens (though you must be 18 to ridealong) who think they hate cops. You may find out something you never knew.
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