COVERITLIVE.COM

12:53

Justin Fenton - I'm having a live chat at 2 p.m. to discuss this week's coverage of continuing violence between feuding drug organizations (see link below). You can submit questions ahead of time here

1:32	Justin Fenton - We've got less than 30 minutes to get some more questions in. There's been a few developments today to discuss, but I must caution that I will have to be careful with some of my comments, as the case remains open

1:58	Justin Fenton - Hi and welcome. We've got a few questions lined up, so I'll tackle those first

1:58

[Comment From Tom B ]
Justin, Great idea to have this chat, as a member of the Baltimore Police Department and you a crime reporter I want your honest opinion, do you think the current level of funding to the BPD is adequate to deal with all the challenges that we face? I understand that Baltimore is a poor city but when I look at the fact that our equipment is so sub standard, lack of computers for warrant checks, vehicle checks, protection orders etc, the cars that are constantly down to be repaired, the lack of vehicles, I'm not even talking salaries, that's a whole different issue in itself. I just want your honest opinion, sometimes it is hard to be objective when your on my side of the badge. My point being is that maybe it is time for the mayor and commissioner to attempt to explain to everyone the realistic expectations of what the BPD can do with it's current level of funding.

1:59

Justin Fenton - Tom, this seems like more of a comment than a question, but the point is well taken. The city, like most big cities, will always struggle with this issue given budget constraints, and the crisis with the economy certainly isn't helping. But the city has tried to prioritize public safety - the police department was the only major agency in the city that didnt take a budget cut last year, and they just received $10 million in stimulus funds to add more officers

2:00

[Comment From kevin ]
what will it take for law enforcement and our elected officials to get tough on crime? it's so annoying to hear dixon tell people "to step up" when that will never happen. and bealefeld is a joke. he wants us to believe that crime is going down and just look at last weekend and all the crime in mt vernon. it's time for a clean sweep of our elected officials at the next election.

2:02

Justin Fenton - Dixon is largely referring to the residents and family members who have information that can help police solve these crimes. But the "Stop Snitching" culture is more than a DVD, and its not going to be resolved easily
As far as crime being down, some types of crime are clearly down, I think its just that incidents such as this weekend or the shooting of Raven Wyatt earlier this month make it hard to believe that could be true

2:02	[Comment From JDUBS ] and why do community organizers and church groups only show up on sunday mornings? why is baltimoer city filled with hyprocritical politicians and organizers who dont and wont handle their community's respective problems?

2:04	Justin Fenton - Those community groups are out there, they just dont always get the media attention. Part of the problem is that they're typically speaking to people who share their message of non-violence, and not getting through to those responsible for the mayhem.

2:05

[Comment From blarg ]
I am disappointed in the recent violence, including the incident involving the youth on home detention. However, when these events happen, people often instantly decide we are on the wrong track, and that zero tolerance is the way to go. Statistics prove that community oriented policing like Boston and San Diego is just as effective, if not more effective than zero tolerance like NYC. It also doesn't violate civil rights like zero tolerance, and doesn't lead to further distrust of the police. What can we do in instances like these to prove that community based strategies are still the answer, despite the knee-jerk reaction to change our ways to a proven-flawed method of policing?

2:06

Justin Fenton - They've backed away from zero tolerance here, though it still exists and is enforced when it comes to known "bad guys," as the police commissioner calls them. A lot of times, the police know who the offenders are but the evidence isn't there to link them to a murder and charge them. So what they try to do is get them on a parole violation, or an open warrant, or a lesser crime for which they have better evidence. It gets them off the streets and may cool things down, but they're invariably right back in a few months

2:07

[Comment From Tired and upset ]
Why is it that this story has not gained national attention. I mean 17 people shot, two killed, and a body tossed out of a car in front of Hopkins ER I would think would rate a little attention. Or is everyone so consumed with the death of a talented junkie or some other piece of nonsense. Maybe they are scarred because they will find out that America's cities are worse than Bagdad. Just a thought and a qusetion. Thank you

2:08

Justin Fenton - It actually did gain national attention, with our story linked from the Drudge Report. But I agree; there's been some pretty wild stories I've covered here that I was surprised didn't get more widespread attention. One that comes to mind is that pastor who worked with developmentally disabled people, who paid a hit man to kill a blind man so he could collect life insurance money. Someone get that to Dateline NBC or 48 Hours ASAP

2:09	Justin Fenton - Some news to report: police have made an arrest in one of the five shootings that occurred Sunday night. Trenard Howard, 21, has been charged in the Comet Ct shooting that left two people injured. Not much more info coming from police at the moment

2:10	[Comment From Matt ] Do you feel there is an “acceptable” level of violence the Baltimore Police strive to achieve? It terms of crime rate numbers?

2:12

Justin Fenton - That's a fascinating question, Matt. But a better question may be, what would the community consider an acceptable level of crime? The department says shootings are down 30 percent this year, yet not a single person seems to believe that the crime situation in the city is any better.
Some police see themselves as trash men, coming to clean up messes and unable to prevent violence. But I dont think that gives them enough credit for the tough investigative work being done on a daily basis.

2:13	[Comment From Joseph P. Mamaonivich ] Justin, have the police determined the root cause of these shootings over the weekend? Are they all related?

2:15

Justin Fenton -

Joseph, we were the first to report Monday morning that the root cause was believed to be an ongoing drug feud between rival organizations, and today's story on the homepage lays out that feud in great detail.
as far as whether they're related, right now only two appear to be related: the shooting at the cookout that injured 12 people, and a gun battle at Baltimore and Bond streets that ended up with a shot-up car at the Hopkins ER

2:15	[Comment From Dr. James MacArthur ] Let's talk about the reward amount, since Dixon seemed to have no interest in even discussing if a higher reward amount would encourage others to talk. What are your thoughts on this?

2:17

Justin Fenton - Hi James. I had been told that police were offering a higher reward in this case, but a quick call to public affairs just now informed me that at this point its not any more than the $2,000 being offered through Metro Crime Stoppers. I guess the fear is that if you raise the reward, where does it stop? Soon that won't be enough, and tips will fall silent. Still, some have made the point that offering a larger chunk of change would still be less than it costs the police to investigate cold cases

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