Live For Buzz

A relatively new Buzzer made an interesting post on EWoodBuzz this month about crime concerns. branman1986 writes:

After hearing all the crap that’s going down in EAV, it’s making me a little paranoid…

How good/bad is Edgewood? I know it’s really locationally dependent, with the NW section a little better and the NE section a little worse. I just didn’t know if the lack of public safety posts was due to lack of forum participation or if there was less crime here than in EAV. EAV seems like a warzone.

There’s always been some controversy around crime discussion on EAVBuzz. “Chamber of Commerce” thinking holds that ignorance is bliss and exposing negatives about the neighborhood creates an undue sense of fear. And that’s illustrated in the quote above. I can understand that logic, and there’s some validity to it from the macro view of people “promoting” the neighborhood.

The Buzz, however, isn’t a promotional tool, it’s a community. And in any real-world community, you talk about local issues - good and bad. The Buzz is just an online extension of that; we are the members of the community, and we talk about local issues - good and bad. But just like in the real world, we don’t air our problems to strangers. The Public Safety sections of the Buzz are viewable by members only.

By embracing the tough discussions, the Buzz facilitates the flow of both information and action. The efficiency of online discussions takes the back fence conversation from “Joe’s house got broken in to yesterday” to “and here’s what happened, the description of the suspects, how it’s similar to other crimes and what we can do about it.” We learn about similar crimes in nearby neighborhoods, we know when people are arrested, we learn how to better secure our homes and neighborhood and we learn how to pressure the courts and police to do more about crime.

In other words, we are better informed, more aware and more empowered because we embrace the conversation.

There is, however, a responsibility for Buzzers to understand the purpose and context of the conversation. An individual can choose - as branman1986 did - to be put in fear, or the individual can choose to be empowered by the information. There is a tough balance there, and I have no doubt that undue fear has been put into the mind of more than a few Buzzers. In total, though, I firmly believe the conversation is positive for the community.

And, by the way, the result of branman1986’s inquiry was him being shown that crime in Edgewood is actually significantly higher than in East Atlanta.

On EWood Buzz: Safety in Edgewood (registration required).

Disappointing news out of DeKalb court today - accused serial burglar Demarcus Buice was granted bond after being denied bond last Saturday when Buzzers showed up for court. And while his bond is what a Buzzer with DA connections calls very high for the crimes he’s charged with ($125,000), it’s quite disheartening to go from feeling like citizens can make a difference to feeling like a sucker for even trying in the span of five days.

And the assistant district attorney who spoke for the state Saturday had told us this hearing was no big deal and we didn’t need to turn out for it. Gee, thanks for that.

How long it’ll take for Buice’s family to find enough of the cash Demarcus has made stealing flat-panel TVs and laptops or fence some of the “inventory” he no doubt has stashed somewhere to raise the bond is unclear. But if he ends up back on the street before trial, the message will be clear that DeKalb Superior Court isn’t willing to protect citizens against the thugs preying on our neighborhoods.

On EAV Buzz: Demarcus Buice granted bond today (registration required).

It was a very interesting morning for a group of Buzzers who ventured out to DeKalb Magistrate Court for the bond hearing of one Demarcus Buice. Buice is charged with four burglaries and one attempted burglary and is suspected in dozens more. He has been on the Atlanta Police Most Wanted list for at least six months and was finally captured this week after a CrimeStoppers tip.

Getting to see his booking mugshot was a highlight of our week.

Last night I got an email from Ed Gilgor (the public safety bulldog of our community association) saying Buice had a bond hearing this morning and that community turnout was key to win a bond denial and keep him in jail. Buzzers had already stepped up with letters sent to the DeKalb District Attorney’s office in opposition to releasing a guy who was wanted by police for six months and is linked to dozens of burglaries back into the neighborhood. But Gilgor stressed the importance of public turnout, and despite the very late notice we turned out a dozen Buzzers for the hearing today.

And our attendance was just a bonus - victims of Buice’s alleged burglaries in East Lake and Kirkwood (the neighborhoods hit in the burglaries Buice is charged for now) were there with other residents of those areas. In total, about 30 people came out on a Saturday morning, and a couple of hundred other people spoke up with letters to APD and the DA’s office.

The effect of this level of community involvement to push hard on the justice system is significant, and it’s an important lesson for anybody living in areas being targeted for this kind of property crime.

Typically, an initial appearance in court includes just the defendant, the judge and the officer who swore out the warrants. Facts of the warrant are presented, the judge questions the defendant about his life on the outside, and the judge considers really basic information to determine what level of bond to set. That’s the way it went for the three other guys making initial appearances today.

But Buice faced a very different sort of thing this morning. Because of the community involvement and expected turnout, DeKalb assistant DA Gunnar Pak showed up to speak for the state and the residents and met with Judge Janis Gordon before the hearing. He was able to explain Buice’s history, his suspected involvement in many other burglaries and the neighborhoods’ concern about him being released on bond to the judge, giving her a clear context for the hearing.

And the impact of that was dramatic. The judge challenged Buice hard on why he should be granted bond, and he had no answers. The point of showing up was to get bond denied, and thankfully that happened.

Buice, however, stepped up to make the court appearance truly awesome. Perhaps feeling intimidated by the crowd the judge reminded him was sitting behind him or pressured by Pak calling him a “professional” burglar, Buice cracked. When Pak told the judge Buice was suspected of being a leader of a crew responsible for dozens of burglaries, Buice bristled and said he hasn’t done nearly that many burglaries. The judge quickly reminded Buice that it’s not advisable for a defendant to speak to the charges in an initial court appearance.

But he wasn’t done.

In the process of trying to make his case for bond, Buice told the judge he grew up in Kirkwood, feels bad for the trouble he’s caused and that the judge doesn’t have to worry about him breaking in to any more houses. He then turned around to the crowd behind him and apologized for breaking into our homes. Pak told us afterward that Buice’s preliminary hearing may consist solely of him reading the statements Buice made today.

WSB-TV was on hand to capture the magic.

The admissions were a sideshow, however. The key point that was made today is community involvement does make a difference in how DeKalb County views defendants. There aren’t a lot of guys like Buice who have been identified in so many burglaries or wanted for so long, but we now have a blueprint for working with police and prosecutors to keep such guys off the streets.

And a whole lot of credit needs to be given to Judge Gordon, who was sole discretion on Buice’s bond. She listened, she understood and she did the right thing.

On EAV Buzz: Want Demarcus Buice to stay in jail … (registration required)

Cruising the neighborhood today, I came across Ratpack out walking his dogs. He pointed me toward an Atlanta Police Department patrol car that was sporting a graffiti tag on its back bumper.

I guess that’s what we’ve come to in Atlanta. Don’t turn your back, even if you’re a cop.

On EAV Buzz: Tagged APD Cruiser (Registration required)