Crime Watch update: More arrests, “amazing teamwork”

| Crime | West Seattle news | West Seattle police

Yet another bulletin from Lt. Steve Paulsen @ the Southwest Precinct, and this one we will take the liberty of quoting verbatim, because it’s about YOU! too:

Just arrested 3 more burglary suspects..The arrest included a stolen car and weapons. (I am losing count…I think we are up to 13 [arrests]) … In my entire 24 years with the Department, I have never experienced the level of teamwork between the citizens, patrol officers and detectives … truly amazing!

Details should be available a bit later. We were just down at the precinct reviewing report printouts for the first time in a while, and it’s true – so many arrests are coming with the help of alert, persistent, determined citizens. It’s not too idealistic/corny to say you CAN take back the streets.

S5 May 13, 2008 (3:17 pm)

Did Lt. Paulsen offer any ideas or info on why our area has been hit so hard with burglaries recently?

RobertSeattle May 13, 2008 (3:19 pm)

I half expecting this soon: “Criminals turn to internet to figure out which neighborhoods are not well served by a local blog”…

Trick May 13, 2008 (3:20 pm)

Impressive!

WSB May 13, 2008 (3:28 pm)

One of the detectives notes that sometimes word gets out on the street about a well-to-do neighborhood that’s easily accessible. Example in this case, the North Admiral ‘hoods that have been getting hit … get off the bridge, up the hill, there you are. Here’s hoping word gets around now that if you hit that hood somebody’s gonna spot you and you’re going to get busted. The second half of it, though, which I am still researching, is the aspect of what happens after you get busted. One guy arrested last Thursday was out by Friday night, according to public records (the only one that wasn’t a juvenile; for juveniles, the custody status is not similarly trackable). Bail for each count of investigation of burglary was barely into four digits. This is not something the police have anything to do with … it’s the courts and the laws that take over after someone is taken into custody.

bananas4vino May 13, 2008 (3:49 pm)

Economy goes down, crime rate goes up….

SomeGuy May 13, 2008 (3:53 pm)

Here’s an idea – why can’t we have a little online “public shaming” for those convicted? Their names, addresses, and most importantly – their photos!
.
I know some cities do this for people convicted for certain crimes – like soliciting a prostitute – so why can’t we do it here?
.
Then we would know who to keep a close eye on when they are out on the streets.

d May 13, 2008 (3:54 pm)

I’m curious, where are the facilities juveniles are detained and released from?

WSB May 13, 2008 (3:59 pm)

Info here.

d May 13, 2008 (3:59 pm)

Can tracking monitors be used on juveniles? So many questions….

amused May 13, 2008 (4:21 pm)

Good work cops. But, alas, the court system will not hold up their end of the justice system. If the suspects were juveniles it is doubtful they ever saw the inside of the Youth Service Center and if adults, they will be released very shortly, if not already. The cops can do all the good work, but it is quickly undone by our broken court system.

Pete May 13, 2008 (4:23 pm)

One reason for it seeming like we have had a drastic increase is because not every neighborhood has the same level of publicity about the problem that we are provided by the WSB. Also the local precinct it seems works a lot closer with the community than some of the other precincts. This is part of the legacy left behind by Capt Fann. AND it also is a testament to what alert citizens who are not afraid to become involved can do to take ownership of thier community.

d May 13, 2008 (4:58 pm)

amused –

having just briefly looked at the above link WSB provided here, I would be interested in hearing what the specific reasons are the juveniles never saw the inside of the Youth Service Center. I’m trying to become better informed here. thanks.

Steve May 13, 2008 (5:19 pm)

Sometimes when I think about the youth who may be involved in these cases, the direction in which their lives are going, and the impact it will have on their families for generations, it make makes me sad.

JimmyG May 13, 2008 (5:50 pm)

Most citizens would be very surprised to learn that the cops can’t book the juveniles they arrest without first calling the Youth Center and getting approval from them to bring the kid down and book them.

So unless the crime is deemed serious enough, the Youth Center can “refuse” to book a juvenile who has been arrested for a so-called minor crime. It’s not even a cops decision; can you imagine if they had to call ahead to the adult jail to be approved to book a criminal? Yet the Youth Center is given this power.

And do you think the juveniles don’t know this? They know exactly how many auto thefts, etc. they can have before they get any time.

d May 13, 2008 (6:06 pm)

Time for me to do a bit of reading about the Youth Center, eh?
Thanks JimmyG and WSB, as always –

JE May 13, 2008 (9:02 pm)

If you want the criminals to stay in jail, you have to be willing to build jails.

WSB May 13, 2008 (9:12 pm)

Per Jimmy’s point … I have seen that on some police reports, “Youth Center refused.”

140.6 May 13, 2008 (10:22 pm)

There is “detention criteria” that the Youth Service Center has to abide by. See here:

http://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/JuvenileCourt/detention/criteria.aspx

Property crimes often don’t make the list. (Though Burglary 1 and 2 does.)

The point is that they will see the inside of YSC but get kicked loose the next day after their “judicial review”.

bart May 13, 2008 (10:25 pm)

If you want the criminals to stay in jail, you have to be willing to build jails.

More like, you have to be willing to empty the existing jails of millions of non-criminals.

d May 14, 2008 (5:12 am)

140.6 –

thanks for posting the link for everyone. The Southwest Precinct Lt. called these kids the “knuckleheads” when I was at the Southwest District Council Meeting last week. Sounded about right to me.

DP May 14, 2008 (1:18 pm)

But if there is no consequence for their actions, they will continue to commit crime.

My neighborhood (and our property) was affected. So while the neighbors and police did a great job, it doen’t mean much if there is no enforcement to deter this actions in the future.

Sorry, comment time is over.