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Q.
Does this Officer really provide a deterrent effect on crime?
 A.
Definitely yes!
Jeanette Oliver, property manager of our Near-by
Diamond Heights Shopping Center, is very
supportive of the program and believes that any
urban neighborhood, especially during tough
economic times when crime inevitably rises, can
benefit. She assures us that for more than 25
continuous years of service, Officer Cal and his
assistants like Officer Jon, have completely
abated the crime that used to exist. Patrol
Special staff are well known by shoppers as well
as by the families who live nearby. Many mothers
and fathers, or even the grown-up children, ask
Ms. Oliver years later to personally thank Officer
Cal for not reporting or "busting" their children
or them for disruptive behavior, but rather taking
steps to discuss the consequences of choosing the
criminal route.
Because
our officers stay in Glen Park during service hours and
are not called out to address emergencies in other parts
of the Ingleside Police District, in Diamond Heights, or
even across the city, they are more likely to be seen by
potential miscreants in our Village, who will avoid them.
When they stop by local markets and delis at odd hours on
patrol, they have sometimes interrupted potential
shoplifters whom they observe hiding products under
jackets or in purses. When these individuals see our
officer, they always do the right thing, drop the products
and leave the shop, thus avoiding a problem for the market
owner and for themselves. In addition, our officers patrol
randomly and may be expected to appear at any time, making
potential miscreants wary. In addition, they easily shift
patrols to focus on streets experiencing problems as they
occur. They concentrate patrols on the evening commute
hour around the BART station. Later in the evening if they
note single women or seniors arriving on BART, they will
inquire if the person needs an escort to their home, and
it is always gratefully accepted! Why not have one extra
officer on duty to support the SFPD who also help Glen
Park, but have a large area to patrol in the Ingelside
district? Top |
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Q.
Would hiring our own Officer result in the SFPD cutting back police services to Glen Park?
A.
Staffing of the SFPD is completely unrelated to the SF Police Special
program primarily because each program has an entirely different goal,
that is, law enforcement (SFPD) versus crime prevention and education
(Patrol Special). I have no evidence that hiring our own Officer will
result in Glen Park being neglected for city police services, and I've
heard of no such complaint arise from other districts having this
program in place for years. In fact, the fact that our Officer will be
primarily devoted to crime prevention and education, will leave SFPD
Officers free to pursue more serious crimes.
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Q.
Why are you personally interested in the Patrol Special
idea for Glen Park?
 A.
Ten years ago as a business woman and sole proprietor, I owned a
lingerie shop on upper Market Street in the Castro district. I or my
young women student employees, often worked alone or closed the shop
after dark. I was relieved to find out about the Patrol Special
program. Along with other merchants I paid a monthly amount to hire
Officer Jane Warner from the patrol. Officer Warner stopped in my shop
several times each day checking on my safety and that of my customers.
She provided customer escort services and was on call 8 hrs. per day in
case of an emergency (such as to handle shoplifting or an obstreperous
customer).
She removed quite a few homeless,
mentally ill or drug-addicted people sleeping in front of my
shop door.
She walked the Castro-Upper Market beat
assisting other store owners as well, making a visible,
uniformed, and legally-armed presence in our shopping area.
During the two years I owned and operated my shop I saw our
regular SFPD police Officer a handful of times on Castro or
Market Street, but I always felt safe to see Officer Warner on
a daily basis and have her standing by. I never had an
unfortunate incidence with crime in my shop. Today
Officer Warner still serves the Castro merchants and is widely
respected there. She also presently serves as President for
her city-wide business association of Patrol Special owners.
She along with Officer Cal Wiley, graciously attended our
recent Glen Park Association dessert social held on Oct. 23,
to answer questions on the program.
Top |
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Q.
Would hiring our own Patrol Special Officer look like some kind of "elitism" when other neighborhoods can't afford to hire one?
A.
Different communities have different compositions of merchant and
neighbor and different histories, and individuals residing or working
in one community may have different priorities regarding each person's
specific concerns. The majority in one community may be focused on
addressing a wave of graffiti, another may be interested in improving
street lighting, yet another might want to beautify the streets and
improve the environment by planting more trees, still another may want
to raise money to donate computers to the grammar school. All of these
improvement projects are valid, as is that of improving our Village and
personal safety. Some can contribute money; some can contribute
time or technical expertise, some just won't be interested at all, and
some will be interested but are retired and living on a fixed income
and can't really help. Are we all so "rich" in Glen Park such that we
can be called "elite," rather than "smart" to step up and shoulder some
responsibility when and as we can, and focus on safety as our present
priority? Isn't crime a proper focus now, because of its recent rise
and violent nature? Isn't the Patrol Special a timely, proven program
we legitimately can pursue as a truly unique, model program that joins
merchants with neighbors in a way that's never been done before?
The fact is that our
Village enjoys a rich mix of older families with single
homeowners, middle aged individuals with young families,
home-style eateries with higher-end restaurants, busy
professionals with those just starting their careers. Some
residents are retired and living on a fixed income; some families
face the daunting financial obligations for college payments. All
of us face declining stock portfolios and 401K plans--if we are
fortunate enough to have them to begin with. Only a few living or
working here may be considered 'well off' in today's economy.
Consider this: do you conclude that our hard-working, small
business owners of mom-and-pop markets, delis, nail salons, and
gift shops are truly earning millions each year? Hardly likely.
Some if not many or most subscribers to our patrol program
will have to dig deep to come up with even a modest monthly
contribution for a project beneficial to the entire Village. But
together, we did it, and can continue to do it! Thus, is it truly
fair to dub subscribers "elite" for committing to enhance safety
for all in Glen Park ? Perhaps subscribers should be congratulated
instead, and invited into other city districts to encourage them
to develop patrol programs, the way that the Castro Citizens'
Walking Patrol comes to various neighborhoods to help organize
patrols, or the way the SAFE watch program is helping organize
watch programs and conduct safety audits on many of our blocks.
Top
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Q.
Would having this program encourage complacency
and
discourage us from expressing our needs for adequate public services we
should be getting (i.e., sufficient police) paid for by tax dollars?
A.
Complacency comes from a deeper and entirely different source than just
seeing one citizen-driven program successfully implemented in Glen
Park. How many of us actually wrote our Supervisor or Police
Chief to request more police after Mr. Park was so viciously attacked?
How many stepped forward to help survey the neighborhood and help
organize this program or a proposed Glen Park Walking Patrol, or a SAFE
block meeting, or another program that made sense? Complacency comes
from an unwillingness, for whatever reason, to get involved and accept
responsibility to step forward consistently over time and as we can, to
find--and implement--viable options that improve our community, rather
than to just complain about a problem.
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A.
Were police there in early October when the homeless man sitting
outside La Corneta was beaten up at 11 pm? Were they there on Oct. 12
at 11 pm when a man was robbed and beaten up at Diamond and Chenery at
the bus stop? Were they there on Monday, Oct. 27 when a woman was
robbed and hit on Surrey at 4:15 pm? Were they there on Tuesday, Oct.
28 when another woman was pushed down, hit and robbed on Sussex at 4:50
pm? Will they still be here in force six months from now, or will they
turn their attention to the rougher areas of the City like the Mission
and Hunter's Point? The point is: won't one more Officer qualified to
arrest and assist the SFPD, be one more to help minimize these
kinds of continuing crimes? No single Officer can be everywhere at
once, but that fact is true for one SFPD Officer or ten SFPD Officers
or our own Patrol Special Officer. Does that mean that as a
community we should not take advantage of this program to add one more
community-based and crime-prevention focused Officer to Glen Park?
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Q.
I live on an outlying Glen Park street.
What if only a handful of houses on my street sign up but the great
majority do not? Will we be able to participate in the program?
A.
Yes. Remember this is a program to improve the safety of all in the
Village. Once we expand our pilot program, you will eventually be
able to call the emergency number or request special services such as
for escort or vacation checks, plus you will still benefit from a safer
Village shopping area when you shop with our local merchants. However,
in general it seems reasonable to expect that the Officer will spend
more time patrolling on street or streets having the largest number of
subscribers but this is determined by the subscribers themselves, and
can and most likely should vary depending on how needs vary with the
time of year and our Officer's advice. It is also conceivable that the
majority of subscribers may prefer the Officer concentrate patrolling
in the Village proper. Remember, this is in part an experimental
program ideally joining merchants and neighbors, and being crafted by
consensus and your participation directly, and by our Provisional
Steering Committee which will meet at least monthly with the Officer.
The goal is to come to a group consensus of what is reasonable and fair
to expect our Officer to do, considering the hours they have been
hired. They will guide us based on their experience, to come up
with a workable initial program which can be reviewed periodically and
changed according to a new consensus. Your opinion and requests will
count.
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