NOCrimeLine, 6/25/07
Be careful out there…
Summer muggies?: We all agree you should be able to walk the streets of the French Quarter or Marigny Triangle any time of the day or night. But you shouldn’t. Here’s another reason why:
Early Sunday morning (6.24.07), just before 5 a.m., a 47-year-old woman walking in the 1000 block of Gov. Nicholls Street, between Burgundy and N. Rampart streets, was mugged and robbed. She passed a black man who turned and struck her from behind, knocking her to the ground. He grabbed her purse and fled.
Besides a $75 Tagnello purse and $40 Liz Clairborne wallet, she lost $400 in cash, a credit card, her driver’s license, and cellphone.
She was unable to give a description of the perpetrator, other than he was a black man. Enough said.
Two too close to home: Their murders didn’t happen in the 8th District, but their connection to the Quarter was unmistakable. Two weeks ago on June 11, Robin Malta, co-owner of Salon d’Malta in the 1200 block of Decatur Street, was killed in his home in the Marigny. Then less than a week later on June 17, Chris Roberts, who worked at Fiorella’s restaurant in the 1100 block of Decatur, was gunned down at his home in the 1900 block of Esplanade Ave.
I had just spoken briefly with Chris about 4:30 p.m. that Sunday afternoon; the police put his time of death at around 8:30 p.m. I didn’t know him well; he was impressed I remembered his name from an earlier conversation. I had told him then that he bore an uncanny resemblance to Jay Thomas, a New Orleans boy who went on to be a famous DJ and actor on numerous sitcoms. Chris was embarrassed he didn’t remember my name and said he had to work on his memory. Here’s to his memory.
If it can happen in their neighborhoods, it can happen in ours. All the more reason to report anything that doesn’t look right, like a stranger lurking on your street or someone following you. And all the more reason to take precautions, like not going walking in the wee hours or taking a taxi if you have to go into the most dangerous areas of the Quarter.
And it’s gained national attention. Sen. Patrick Leahey noted in his opening remarks at the Senate hearing this past Wednesday (6.20.07) on the rise of crime since the storm:
* “Violent crime in New Orleans has reached near-epidemic proportions and emerged as the most serious threat to its recovery since the storm. In the first three months of this year, violent crime is up more than 100 percent compared to the same time a year ago.”
* “The murder rate per capita is now the highest in America, more than 20 percent higher than in the any other major city. At its current rate, New Orleans has 12 times as many homicides as New York City, 3 times as many as Philadelphia, and twice as many as Washington, D.C.”
* “Last year, there were more than 160 murders in the city, and so far, only one murder case has led to a conviction — just one. The police have only brought a quarter of those cases to the district attorney to be charged, and the office has accepted only half of those for prosecution.”
As I said, be careful out there.
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Please forward this message to anyone interested in the quality of life in the French Quarter and Marigny Triangle. To be added to our email list, send your FULL NAME and HOME ADDRESS to: NOcrimeline@gmail.com.
As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.
Thom Kahler
