Local Murders

[bullets13]

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Beaumont home invasion leads to shootout that leaves 2 dead 

[bullets13]

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shooting at cheek rodeo leaves one dead, one injured

[CardinalBacker]

What could all of these shooters have in common?  It seems like it would be obvious, but I just can't tell what it is about all of this violent crime that seems to be uniform.  

 

Well, maybe we can get to that one day.  In the meantime we need to focus on stamping out systemic racism, abortion, and microaggressions via mis-gendered pronouns.  

It's not going to go away unless people can actually describe what's going on. 

[tvc184]

A few years back there was a rash of violent crimes including murder, in PA. The community had enough! We are gathering to do something.

So they held a rally at a football stadium. A few hundred people gathered, spoke of the evils of violence and how it was destroying communities. Then they prayed.

 And in the next weeks there was continued violent crimes. Unfortunately the violent criminals in the community weren’t at the rally. 

I don’t blame people for coming together and praying. Unfortunately that is where it ends probably 98% of the time.

A week later a person who was at the rally might have witnessed a violent crime but now has kept quiet. If the victim lived, the police are told by the victim to not investigate it. It’s in the news all the time… KFDM was told by the police that the victim doesn’t want to press charges. Case closed!

Then the community gets together and wonders why it hasn’t stopped. 

A simple look in the mirror might tell the answer. 

[WOSdrummer99]

Street code...

We don't talk to police, we don't make a peace bond
We don't trust in the judicial system, we shoot guns
We rely on the streets, we do battle in the hood
I was born in the G Code, embedded in my blood

- Brad Jordan

[SmashMouth]

2 hours ago, WOSdrummer99 said:

Street code...

We don't talk to police, we don't make a peace bond
We don't trust in the judicial system, we shoot guns
We rely on the streets, we do battle in the hood
I was born in the G Code, embedded in my blood

- Brad Jordan

Definitely "Street Code" - unfortunately it's really just an excuse for unlawful activity.

[WOSdrummer99]

31 minutes ago, SmashMouth said:

Definitely "Street Code" - unfortunately it's really just an excuse for unlawful activity.

Some things still need to change. Always have, always will.

[SmashMouth]

1 hour ago, WOSdrummer99 said:

Some things still need to change. Always have, always will.

Yep. 

[tvc184]

7 hours ago, WOSdrummer99 said:

Street code...

We don't talk to police, we don't make a peace bond
We don't trust in the judicial system, we shoot guns
We rely on the streets, we do battle in the hood
I was born in the G Code, embedded in my blood

- Brad Jordan

If that is what people want for their neighborhood, okay. Don’t talk, don’t cooperate.

 But then the complaints come out that it is someone else’s fault. The city, the police, the mayor or whoever, won’t protect the community.

The answer, a simple, no, you won’t protect yourselves. The city can offer the manpower and the county can prosecute but only if a witness steps forward or someone drops a dime on an anonymous phone call. 

When I was in community policing as an assignment, I would tell every one of the more than a dozen community groups in our city, your neighborhood can absolutely be as peaceful as you want it. The problem is you have to actually want it and not just say the words, I wish I could sleep at night.

The problem is not the criminals. The problem is the people living there, who are not willing to lift a finger to stop it. Most of the time that lifting of a finger is simply placing a phone call.

Community policing started in Port Arthur from an informal group of Black men who started it on their own. A few friends got together and said we are tired of this crap in our small neighborhood. I think all of them were military veterans and most or maybe all had been to Vietnam. They did not ask for permission, they simply started walking as a group and confronting dope dealers hanging out.

After a while they approached the police department and asked for help. The chief called for a meeting with them I and other officers volunteered to be involved. That group of men called themselves AAMAN (we pronounced it “uh-manh”)/African American Men Against Narcotics. 

They alone kicked off what would later have a very successful run of community policing. We applied and got a federal grant to specifically hire 9 officers to run the program of community groups.

 That program was later ended as I guess political climates changed with money spent elsewhere and new priorities popped up but the 3 year federally paid program lasted about 15 years and was fairly successful.

 The point being, a neighborhood can have as quiet of a neighborhood as they want.

As Officer Malone (Sean Connery) told Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) a couple of times in the Untouchables…. “What are you prepared to do?”.

Many people aren’t prepared to do anything except complain. 
 

[thetragichippy]

IMO it comes down to policies, politics and policing.  Over the last 30 years. I moved from Port Arthur, to Port Neches to Lumberton and back to Port Arthur.  Look at the crime statistics. 

1.  You will not get away with speeding in Lumberton (I have the tickets to prove it)

2. The same goes for Port Neches. 

It appears Port Arthur does not have the police presence these other cities have. They may not have the funding or maybe can't find recruits. All I know is I very seldom see a PA patrol car when I'm out and about. 

TVC?

[thetragichippy]

Also, when politics causes Police officers to lose the "respect" or even "fear" factor they once had, it's dangerous and I think in some cities we are seeing the results. 

 

[tvc184]

47 minutes ago, thetragichippy said:

IMO it comes down to policies, politics and policing.  Over the last 30 years. I moved from Port Arthur, to Port Neches to Lumberton and back to Port Arthur.  Look at the crime statistics. 

1.  You will not get away with speeding in Lumberton (I have the tickets to prove it)

2. The same goes for Port Neches. 

It appears Port Arthur does not have the police presence these other cities have. They may not have the funding or maybe can't find recruits. All I know is I very seldom see a PA patrol car when I'm out and about. 

TVC?

Perception?

PA is a large city in physical size and the police are usually (but not always) busy and a lot more busy per officer. A quick look at the crime stats shows why you might not see officers more visible in PA. 

A city like Lumberton is more compact so if two officers spend a couple of hours a day on two main thoroughfares, they are easy to see often.   PA has 4 times the population as Lumberton but has 6 times more square miles. So when with the same number of officers per capita, they have more miles per officer to cover. 

Then there is the frequency of certain calls which require multiple officers. 

At its peak like Friday and Saturday evening shift, there might be 11-12 marked patrol units in PA but you might not see them often. On day and night shifts, probably 9 units. Those officers are likely on calls, a majority of which are in neighborhoods so unless you are in the housing areas, they likely won’t be seen.

As far as frequencies, look at the FBI stats on robberies for example. Lumberton shows an average of 3 per year. With 4 times the population, PA should average 12 per year, right? Nope, try 400. Let’s see 12 vs 400…..

You aren’t as likely to get away with speeding in Lumberton because that is a big deal. You might never get a speeding ticket in PA. The officers are not as inclined to run radar when they aren’t busy but much of the time it isn’t even an option. They are simply doing something else. 

Lumberton has 1.3 officers per 1.,000 people. PA has 2.3 so almost twice as many per capita…. Yet you might not see them as often. 

 I could cut all that down to, PA officers (like Beaumont or Orange) are busy answering calls for service. Lumberton officers are not as busy and running radar. Then, making traffic stops on main streets (such as Lumberton) obviously attracts attention with the emergency lights. 
 

And since I tossed in Beaumont and Orange…   
Look at burglaries which is commonly called a break in. Someone breaks into a business at night or a home or garage. It could be as little as going into an unlocked garage and stealing a bicycle but it’s an entry crime of going into a building or residence that is not open to the public to steal, assault or commit another felony. In other words, a serious crime. The FBI rates crimes per 100,000 people.

So for burglaries per 100,000 people in the last 10 years it averages about:

Lumberton-300
Beaumont-1,100
Port Arthur-1,100
Orange-1,100

 

[tvc184]

1 hour ago, thetragichippy said:

Also, when politics causes Police officers to lose the "respect" or even "fear" factor they once had, it's dangerous and I think in some cities we are seeing the results. 

 

Any time you make the police the enemy and reduce policing, particularly in neighborhoods, the results will not be good.

Major cities do exactly that. 

[SmashMouth]

2 hours ago, tvc184 said:

So for burglaries per 100,000 people in the last 10 years it averages about:

Lumberton-300
Beaumont-1,100
Port Arthur-1,100
Orange-1,100

And that’s why I live in Lumberton…

[thetragichippy]

17 hours ago, SmashMouth said:

And that’s why I live in Lumberton…

I sold my home in Lumberton last year and moved back to my childhood home in Port Arthur. The area I live has no apartments/a street over from "Groves" so the crime seems to be a non-issue.  With that said, can't wait to build our house in Silsbee on the 3 acres we bought.

 

[SmashMouth]

20 minutes ago, thetragichippy said:

I sold my home in Lumberton last year and moved back to my childhood home in Port Arthur. The area I live has no apartments/a street over from "Groves" so the crime seems to be a non-issue.  With that said, can't wait to build our house in Silsbee on the 3 acres we bought.

 

I’m actually looking for about 3 acres in Silsbee. I bought 10 acres off FM 420 in Kountze, but it’s really too far away from my job. Looking for a place to build after retirement (if that ever happens, lol). 

[thetragichippy]

3 hours ago, SmashMouth said:

I’m actually looking for about 3 acres in Silsbee. I bought 10 acres off FM 420 in Kountze, but it’s really too far away from my job. Looking for a place to build after retirement (if that ever happens, lol). 

I hear ya. Silsbee will still be about a 30 minute for me and 45 for the wife, but it's worth it to live on the creek. 

[SmashMouth]

1 hour ago, thetragichippy said:

I hear ya. Silsbee will still be about a 30 minute for me and 45 for the wife, but it's worth it to live on the creek. 

Exactly. 30 to 45 minutes isn't so bad.

My land is approx an hour + depending on Lumberton traffic on 69. I live off Keith Rd right now, and it's only 20-22 minutes generally which is awesome.

[5GallonBucket]

On 4/14/2023 at 1:10 PM, thetragichippy said:

I hear ya. Silsbee will still be about a 30 minute for me and 45 for the wife, but it's worth it to live on the creek. 

Amen to that.

[bullets13]

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[CardinalBacker]

23 hours ago, bullets13 said:

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White kids, too, I'd like to point out.  

 

[bullets13]

4 hours ago, CardinalBacker said:

White kids, too, I'd like to point out.  

 

I found them on facebook.  They didn't want to be white.  That said, lots of interesting things in the comments of some of their friends and families.  People accusing the victim's girlfriend of sleeping with the shooter, who was supposedly one of the victim's best friends.

[bullets13]

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