@BlogKCLast night four shootings around the city left two people dead and several more injured. This is on top of a virtually un-enforced fireworks ban, it seems like the city is developing a culture of lawlessness on the 4th of July. When citizens see cops driving by and ignoring people setting off illegal fireworks in the streets and public parks, it sends a message that it’s OK to break the law.
It’s become so bad in recent years that neighborhood associations in Midtown and the Old Northeast have started hiring off-duty cops to patrol their neighborhoods and enforce the fireworks ban. In essence, private citizens are spending their own money to get police to do their job – a job that the KCPD already receives a lot of tax money to perform.
Except – this year local neighborhoods weren’t allowed to hire off-duty officers to enforce the ban. More information at the Northeast News.
Heck, some midtown neighborhood associations are hiring off-duty police to patrol their neighborhoods NOT on the 4th of July, but just to curb general theft, drug dealing and violence…it’s not just a 4th of July thing…and it’s not just the police either…as they have been conditioned to not enforce the law because of our inability as a city to prosecute the people they bring in…
What’s our mayor got to say about this? When it comes to the issue of crime, it seems like the only thing we ever hear from Funk’s direction is crickets chirping.
i thought it was always a free-for-all? doesn’t seem all that new of a problem to me. the solution: statewide bans in KS and MO. professionals are already requred to obtain permits in most places.
kiki: wouldn’t you rather hear from the *police chief* on the lack of enforcement?
…and we’re certainly not alone:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/laworder/story/A27FF2BC2BF14D718625730F003D9ABD?OpenDocument
Dave, I’d like to hear from both of them. Crime was an ignored issue in the mayoral election. The media didn’t discuss it and the candidates didn’t discuss it.
Of course the Police Chief is in charge of the police department, but shouldn’t the Mayor’s office be putting pressure on him to do a better job?
Every week there’s another story like this one. Yet, other than Gloria’s phone calls for security whenever Funk has to mingle with people of color, it doesn’t appear that the 29th Floor cares what the police department does.
Please, correct me if I’m wrong. I’d love to be told otherwise. But from what the public has seen, Funk doesn’t appear to care about crime.
How often did Kay Barnes speak out on crime? Oh, that’s right, rarely. Let’s not pretend crime became a problem with Funkhouser’s swearing in.
Enforcement of the fireworks ban seems to be a matter of priorities. If it’s a choice between writing tickets for fireworks or responding to a more serious crime, I’d rather the police respond to the serious crime first.
But Brent correctly points out that the police are struggling to even do that.
Let’s create some TIF to build some new police stations!
Enough city financed shopping centers and Wal-Marts.
• Better roads
• Better transportation
• Better safety
Let’s hope Mayor Funk makes these a priority.
As for fireworks: Most people are too stupid to handle flames and small explosives. However, the state of Missouri has several giant fireworks companies located in this area, and they aren’t going to upset them by enforcing fireworks laws. It’s real simple: If you really wanted to stop illegal fireworks, you would stop letting people sell them. The stores and tents selling fireworks are everywhere.
It would be like setting up tents selling marijuana, and then telling people they could buy it, but they couldn’t smoke it!
Until they get a handle on their hypocrisy, people will continue to blow each other up and set their homes on fire.
In the Old Northeast this year, the neighborhood associations couldn’t afford to hire off-duty police due to the rule regarding paying for benefits plus hourly wages for these officers. It was a new rule to the associations, as it wasn’t mentioned the years before. So, if the neighborhoods can’t afford the police, how long before they start hiring mercinaries? And when will the newspapers quit accepting advertising from fireworks distributors for areas where it’s outlawed? Why not accept ads from crack dealers as well?
I’ve got news for you Patrick, Kay Barnes isn’t mayor anymore. Funk is, and he has been for months. I’m not saying it’s Funk’s fault, but it seems as if things are getting worse right now rather than better. Again, not his fault, but if he doesn’t step up and lead on the issue at some point, then it definitely will be his fault, his problem, and his failure.
Since when is there something wrong with looking to your city’s leader to lead?
Yeah, that’s right Kiki, Funkhouser has two months to fix all the problems that Mayor Kay ignored for eight years. Otherwise he’s not a leader and obviously a failure. That’s some brilliant analysis.
Look, your candidate lost the election. Get over it.
All you fine folks in KCMO bitchin’ about not having basic services should have thought of that when you voted for remodeling the Truman Sports Complex, instead of asking where the tax money had gone that was ALREADY being collected by Jackson County for them to be a ‘proper’ landlord and maintain the buildings properly…or when you voted in that STUPID light rail plan (I.E. the train to nowhere), and then ruined downtown by supporting an arena with NO TENANT!!
If you want cops, firemen, garbage collectors, and decent streets and utilities, REMEMBER these little ‘gems from the past’, and vote accordingly!!
@Glad I’m in JoCo:
Thanks for assuming that those of us bitching were the ones that voted for the aforementioned boondoggles. None of those votes passed with a huge margin, and a lot of people _didn’t_ vote for them.
Perhaps Glad I’m in JoCo is right – but then try catching a bus in Johnson County on Saturday – oh . . . that’s right . . . the good people of Johnson County would rather us all drive SUV’s instead of using transit to visit our strip malls and chain store shopping centers. Most who understand how major metro areas function understand that transit is a basic service – like it or not, Johnson County is part of the metro and as such should be taking part in developing a regional approach to transit. The fact that Johnson County offers no funding for weekend transit is a far bigger embarrassment to the metro area than the poor roads of KCMO.
Very much glad I’m not in Johnson County!