The only kind of enforcement that DC seems to be efficient at is parking enforcement and speeding cameras.

Well that’s the thing - back in MA our cops were dealing with plenty of “serious stuff” as well, however a big part of that was a huge community policing effort. They were always out walking the streets, petting the dogs, chatting with the old ladies in the coffee shop, playing ball with the kids after school etc. Between that and the vast majority of the force being local I was always extremely impressed with their work. DC is obviously bigger with more/bigger problems, but man do I miss the days of feeling like I could always rely on the police if anything happened.

"they are too busy with more serious stuff"

yet with the more serious stuff they are nowhere to be found either.

PRIORITIZE. Both MPD and prosecutors need to PRIORITIZE.

Anonymous wrote:

Another thing I think is an issue is that a majority of MPD officers don't even live in the city. I think they would be more invested in the city if they were actually residents. Not sure how that could be addressed, maybe a housing stipend to offset cost differentials if they move into the city?

This is a very good point. We moved to Ward 3 from a small city in MA and I’ve honestly been shocked by just how incompetent MPD is. Every single time I’ve witnessed their work it has been amazing just how little they care and how extremely unhelpful they are. Just a few months ago there was a homeless guy having a mental breakdown on Wisconsin, threatening strangers, etc - I saw a dad with a newborn jump into the traffic on Wisconsin just to avoid getting attacked. Finally a cruiser pulls up, lights flashing, the crazy guy starts attacking the cruiser, beating on it and threatening the cop and the cop… turns off his lights and drives away, I figure he didn’t feel like dealing with it. The crazy guy continues threatening strangers, all this mid-day on a weekend right by all the outdoor seating. A few weeks later I witnessed SIX cops with another cruiser pulling up for backup harassing a guy who was sitting by the Tenley metro stop, doing nothing threatening and speaking with them politely - real tough guys in that case. 🙄

Another episode - someone I know had to call the cops because her neighbor appeared to be beating his girlfriend. MPD arrives, dude doesn’t open the door and is yelling at them to eff off. They then ask the girlfriend THROUGH THE DOOR if she was okay and when she says yes (for all they know the abuser could have been holding a gun to her head) they just leave. There are zero beat cops, and if I ever see one on foot they just avoid eye contact. And so on and so forth. Back in MA our city had plenty of crime, but when I reported a stolen package I had the personal cell and email of the detective working my case who treated it as if it was actually a priority for him. Living there I could never understand the anti-police sentiment, but now I kind of do.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only gun violence epidemic I worry about in this city is police shooting BIPOC. How many already this year?

Seems like a sensible approach. Police should stop policing those areas. They don’t need to get shot at either. Better to just avoid the entire problem.

PP was being facetious. I’m not sure how many people DC police have shot this year but it’s probably very few in comparison to the two hundred people who have been shot by civilians.

Anonymous wrote:The only gun violence epidemic I worry about in this city is police shooting BIPOC. How many already this year?

Seems like a sensible approach. Police should stop policing those areas. They don’t need to get shot at either. Better to just avoid the entire problem.

Cops don’t get out of their cars in any neighborhood I’ve ever lived in. Not Shaw, not Dupont, not Logan, not Cleveland Park or Woodley Park. Not sure about others but they are nowhere to be found.

The only gun violence epidemic I worry about in this city is police shooting BIPOC. How many already this year?

Anonymous wrote:If you are a DC citizen and you don't know the name of the cop on the beat that includes your house – that is the problem. Cops doing real police work talk to citizens and get to know them.

Contee is going to increase the number of bike and scooter patrols as they will be a lot more approachable and in touch that way as they are tucked away inside patrol cars. I agree with that.

Another thing I think is an issue is that a majority of MPD officers don't even live in the city. I think they would be more invested in the city if they were actually residents. Not sure how that could be addressed, maybe a housing stipend to offset cost differentials if they move into the city?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Turns out that 40% of DC's gun violence happens in just 2% of the city. And I suspect a lot of the other gun violence outside of this area relates back to it in some way. MPD should be putting significant all-hands resources into cameras/surveillance/investigative/undercover work to geographically root this out.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/07/22/shooting-increase-dc-gun-violence/

Putting a disproportionate amount of police resources into 2% of the city will immediately get you branded as a racist.

Why would any MPD police officer risk charges of racism (plus the risk of facing armed criminals) by going to Anacostia?

Answer: none.

Much safer to write parking tickets in Tennleytown at 1 AM than go into S.E.

Didn’t you all know this already?? Or are you new to town?

Claims of "racism" are a bogus attack that needs to be slapped down. Again the answer is that they are responding to crime stats, not racial stats. There are lots of predominantly black neighborhoods that don't have as much violence going on as the 2% of the city that is responsible for 40% of the shootings.

Anonymous wrote:Lived in DC over a decade, worked downtown for over two decades, haven’t been back but once since March 2020, and quite honestly am apprehensive about ever setting foot downtown again. We so need to get those guns out of circulation and out of the hands of violent young men. But of course there is no consensus to make that happen - it is this country that has become a shithole.

You’re free to leave. Have a nice trip.

Lived in DC over a decade, worked downtown for over two decades, haven’t been back but once since March 2020, and quite honestly am apprehensive about ever setting foot downtown again. We so need to get those guns out of circulation and out of the hands of violent young men. But of course there is no consensus to make that happen - it is this country that has become a shithole.

Daily Mail already has it also.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9816601/Diners-run-lives-gunfire-breaks-restaurant-Washington-DC-broad-daylight.html

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Shooting on 14th St. NW just now.

Where on 14th?

Near Riggs - https://twitter.com/igorbobic/status/1418365653946404865

Anonymous wrote:Shooting on 14th St. NW just now.

Where on 14th?