Monday, October 14, 2002 -
PASADENA -- Driving by Washington Middle School in northwest Pasadena, Sgt. Percy Tucker is surprised when children wave to him.
"That kills me, every time that happens, that kills me!' Tucker said, smiling.
Tucker has been with the Pasadena Police Department since 1982 and patrolled during decades when gang violence was commonplace. He said he isn't accustomed to being a welcomed figure in the neighborhood and attributes the friendly attitude to a continued decline in crime.
The mood on the street and crime statistics reflect a safer Pasadena, according to residents and police. Every category of reported Part 1 criminal offenses violent crimes like murder, rape, armed robbery and aggravated assault has been steadily decreasing in Pasadena for the past decade, according to police statistics.
The homicide rate dropped from 18 in 1992 to 4 in 2001, a 78-percent decrease. Rape is down from 47 in 1992 to 30 in 2001, a 36percent decrease. Armed robbery is down from 482 in 1992 to 154 in 2001, a 68- percent decrease. The past decade also has shown a crime decline in the state and nation, but Pasadena is ahead of the trends, according to Pasadena Police Chief Bernard Melekian.
No one knows precisely why crime is decreasing, but the healthy economy of the previous decade could be one reason, Melekian said. Other factors may include strict penalties for criminals, the increased involvement of residents in their neighborhoods and policing that's based on personal relationships.
The three-strikes law has taken the most violent criminals off the streets, Melekian said. The law, which went into effect in 1994, has had its critics who say it's too harsh. It generally dictates that a person who's convicted for a third felony can be put in prison for 25 years to life. Residents in northwest Pasadena, historically the city's highest reported crime area, say they notice the crime reduction. In the mid 1980s and 90s, the King's Village apartments in northwest Pasadena once had drug deals on every corner, shootings and frequent foot pursuits, Tucker said.
Not anymore, he said. Now, the cement pillars and wrought iron fencing that were erected around King's Village a decade ago are being removed. They were installed to separate street criminals from residents but aren't needed anymore, Tucker said.
Residents of King's Village don't tolerate criminals anymore, manager Anna Schultz said.
"The residents take pride in where they live now,' Schultz said. "They want everyone to know that if you don't belong here, you shouldn't be here.'
After-school programs and neighborhood associations are also to credit for the crime reduction, according to Jalila Walker, youth programs coordinator for Neighbors Acting Together Helping All a northwest Pasadena after-school program.
"If someone from the outside comes in and says you should do this to reduce crime, it's not going to work if the people who live there aren't interested in changing things,' Walker said.
Parents got motivated to change their community when it wasn't safe for their children to walk home from school or go outside and play, Walker said.
Residents and police officials also credit the police department's emphasis on community- based policing for the crime reduction. The approach involved building relationships on a daytoday level between patrol officers and residents, Melekian said. The relationships increase the amount of information police receive and also prevent crime, he said.
-- Marshall Allen can be reached at (626) 578-6300 Ext. 4461, or by e-mail at marshall.allen@sgvn.com.
Community policing credited in NW Pasadena
King's Village to take down walls