Chalet-Peyton Woods Community Association

Citizens' Court Watch Eye on Midtown 4/22/2011

EYE ON MIDTOWN 4/22/2011

Midtown Ponce Security Alliance

PO Box 7038 / Atlanta, GA 30357

HERE COME THE HOOLIGANS!
The Gidewons received their liquor license from the state, and plan to open their overwhelming nightclub in May on Peachtree Street. More at Midtown Patch: http://midtown.patch.com/articles/controversial-club-reign-to-open-in-may

MEMO FROM MAJOR WILLIAMS

ADVERSE PROPOSAL UNDER CONSIDERATION - Action Requested

MPSA NOTE: Amy Wenk of Midtown Patch wrote a good article on this situation.

Good morning, the Midtown Police Precinct current allows us the opportunity to have officers, 24 hours a day, to provide community oriented policing, via foot beats, segways, bicycles, and motorcycle patrols. We are also on fixed posts in some areas, such as the Peachtree Street and Pine Street Shelter and the Piedmont Park detail, to maintain order. However, Deputy Chief Finely is proposing to change the mission of this precinct and assign our officers as beat officers, responding to 911 calls, solely. Thus, motorcycle, segways, foot beat, bicycle, and Piedmont Park patrols would be efforts of the past. No more Officer Stevens to patrol Atlantic Station and the Home Park community.

I suggest that you contact Chief Turner and express that Midtown deserves the officers' presence that have been in place for the past twenty years and by having "only" one officer to serve Beats 502, 503, 504, and 505, each, would be counter-productive, taking us back to the 1980's, when there were crime concerns here, due to lack of police presence, which is why the Midtown Precinct was implemented. I assure you, there are too many citizens, residents, churches, businesses, and the city's most prominent park, for this area not to maintain its current level of staffing, which is in need of additional staffing.

Just a year ago, at the Midtown Annual Breakfast, Chief Turner mentioned to the forum that the area needs more officers, which everyone applauded. Presently, he is not aware of the desire to remove our employees from their current mission, but you, as stake-holders, are asked to speak out on this matter and save your investments from ruin.

In closing, as a great example, the Midtown Precinct's employees were off on Monday night (off days Sundays and Mondays) and Beats 502, 503, 504, and 505, were patrolled solely by the listed beat officer. Unfortunately, without the additional presence of Midtown's staff, the area experienced a shooting at Club Sutura, and a home invasion at Atlantic Station, where gambling items were discovered (two poker tables and a large number of poker chips). Without the additional presence of officers, the club scene would explode and suspicious persons would overwhelm our communities! Furthermore, more of these type of issues would be reported in the future.

Please make a difference to protect this great area! The chief's office number is 404.546.6900.

Yours,

Khirus E. Williams

STREET CRIMINAL: DANIEL LEE HOLT

One attentive neighbor noticed on their home security cameras a white male carrying a gray bag, a laptop, and another object. Very shortly afterwards they found out that a neighbor had just come home and discovered they had just been burglarized. A detective backing up the responding officer recognized the suspect as Daniel Lee Holt, an area street criminal with a long history.

Officers patrolled the neighborhood intensively in search of Holt, and found him later in the shift getting out of a car on Durant Place. Holt has been hanging around in the neighborhood for quite some time. Holt was booked into the Fulton County jail, and remains there as of this writing.

His extensive history includes weapon offenses, burglary, drugs, and related. He has scores of convictions, and the Department of Corrections shows three short periods of incarceration in the prison system.

Mugshots: http://www.midtownponce.org/p1896.html

STREET CRIMINAL SENT TO PRISON: CANDICE HUGHES

At long last one of the very worst human beings to ever appear on Ponce de Leon was sent to prison recently. The very violent Candice Hughes has been a noted prostitute, heavy drug user, and all-around criminal in the Ponce de Leon Corridor. In late 2009 she was arrested with another individual for robbery and aggravated assault, and sentenced to seven years. According to Department of Corrections records, she was placed at Arrendale State Prison in Alto, GA, where she will only serve until November 2012.

Previous information on this criminal: http://www.midtownponce.org/ptag/candice-hughes

MPSA PATROL ACTIVITY

3/01 Arrest - Pedestrian in Roadway on Ponce
3/04 Arrest - Pedestrian in Roadway on Ponce
3/04 Arrest - Pedestrian in Roadway on Ponce
3/04 Field Interview - Known troublemaker in area interviewed
3/09 Misc. - Sgt. Cooper assisted in an attempted suicide in the 400 block of Ponce
3/11 Arrest - False Report to Police
3/11 Arrest - Criminal Trespass
3/11 Arrest - Field Interview yields warrant for arrest in another jurisdiction
3/15 Arrest - Two individuals shoplifting at member business
3/18 Arrest - Criminal Trespassing
3/19 Arrest - Criminal Trespass
3/21 Arrest - Criminal Trespass
3/22 Arrest - False Report to Police
3/23 Misc. - MPSA Special Meeting
3/24 Arrest - Disorderly conduct and obstruction, Ponce & Kennesaw
3/28 Misc. - Sgt. Cooper worked with two serious ongoing disputes between neighbors (unrelated) brought to MPSA attention. Sgt. Cooper dealt with all parties and advised a course of action in each unrelated situation. He will follow up.

APD SPECIAL ALERT

The Atlanta Police Department has worked a few incidents recently in which thieves abruptly snatch electronic devices from consumers while they’re being used in public settings. Specifically, it appears thieves have targeted people using items such as laptop computers, iPads or iPods in coffee shops. The thieves strike quickly and flee immediately. Atlanta Police in Zone 6 (East Atlanta), with the help of Good Samaritans, made an arrest on April 16th, after a thief struck at a coffee shop in the Edgewood area. Police ask that people using electronic devices in public be mindful of their surroundings and immediately report suspicious activity to business owners or 911. Victims of such thefts should also use caution when confronted by a thief; no property is worth personal injury.

More about APD Special Alerts at http://atlantapd.org/alertinformation.aspx

BLUELIGHT BLOTTER

On April 16, 2011 at 9:45pm, an APD officer responded to 144 Ponce de Leon Ave in regards to a fight call that was determined to be a home invasion. According to the victim, he heard an individual walking down the apartment complex hallway kicking doors. When the suspect kicked the victim’s door, the victim opened the door and confronted the suspect. At this point the suspect forced his way into the apartment, pushing the victim down a flight of stairs. Inside the apartment a struggle ensued where the victim was struck numerous times in the head and face, resulting in a large laceration under his eye. The victim retrieved a knife from the kitchen and cut the suspect on the neck and hands. At some point the suspect grabbed a stack of credit cards belonging to the victim and fled the apartment, but dropped them all at the elevator. The blood trail led to the elevator, where he dropped all of the stolen credit cards, and then onward to an apartment on another floor. The APD officer immediately detained the suspect as he answered the door. The police report noted that the suspect was extremely intoxicated and had vomited all over his bathroom prior to APD interception. Additional officers and investigators responded to the scene. The suspect refused to speak to investigators regarding the incident. Paramedics from Grady came to the scene to treat the victim and the suspect. APD charged the suspect accordingly, and booked him into the Fulton County jail after treatment at Grady Hospital. Police have not determined if the suspect and victim knew each other prior to the incident.

On 3/19/11 the Atlanta Police Department hosted a "meet the officers assigned to the COPS unit" at Woodruff Park. At 2:15pm Community Liaison Unit Officer A. Smith spotted Ricky Daniels walking on Peachtree Street at Luckie Street. Mr. Daniels had outstanding warrants concerning an incident 110552154 in which Community Liaison Unit officers were watching the Jason Deli parking garage at 250 10th Street, NE, because the business complained to us of larceny from vehicles on three consecutive nights during the evening hours. Mr. Daniels came into the parking garage and attempted to enter an APD Ford Taurus, which was parked at the location by the Homicide Unit. As the Community Liaison Unit officers attempted to apprehend Mr. Daniels, he fled on foot, but dropped his cell phone. We obtained warrants for this incident and placed a BOLO on Mr. Daniels. On incident 110641567, an officer assigned to Zone 5 Underground spotted Mr. Daniels and attempted to arrest him, but Mr. Daniels struck the officer and fled. Additional warrants were taken out on that incident. On today's date, Community Liaison Unit Officer A. Smith on bike patrol at our COPS event spotted Mr. Daniels and he was taken into custody with the assistance of Community Liaison Unit Officer A. Gruen and Officer D. Hilton. LT. D. Little and CID of Zone 5 responded to the location and Mr. Daniels was transported to Fulton County Jail. Our previous report on this individual:http://www.midtownponce.org/p1846.html

MPSA MAILBAG

What the neighbors are telling us. As always, these do not necessarily reflect MPSA position…

#1 - I just called the cops to report a man and woman smoking crack on Kennesaw Ave on my neighbors steps. I told them that they couldn't do that in front of my house; they were belligerent toward me and continued to light up. This man has approached my husband and me on separate occasions to hassle us for: money, cigarettes and condoms. I have also seen him peeing on our sidewalk. On at least one occasion he seemed too high to comprehend us, and after we chased him off, he came to our house that evening, rang the doorbell and begged for money. We called the cops. When I saw him today: he is African-American, fairly tall, wearing a black jacket, and a black baseball cap with white piping. He was with a white woman with brown, shoulder length hair wearing a brown coat with fur around the hood. I have seen her soliciting on Ponce. They each had their own crack pipe.

#2 - 689 Myrtle has been vacant for quite some time, but I have only recently noticed signs of vagrant camping on the property. There are two shopping carts parked in the yard and when my husband and I walked up the driveway, we could see pans of food scraps, utensils and bedding laying on the porch. Could you have the officers check the property more thoroughly to see if people have broken in? Also, does MPSA have the owners' information to tell them to come clean up the mess? MPSA NOTE: The house in question was showing early signs of vagrant/squatter activity. Sgt. Cooper removed some bedding and a shopping cart, and no further activity has been noted.

#3 - As I am waiting at red light on Spring Street I was staring off to the right as I was holding a cigarette out the window. Suddenly a vagrant walking by snatched it out of my hand. While the police do not have time for this sort of thing, I have the impression that the next person this individual catches texting at a red light will lose an iPhone...

BE SAFE & STAY VIGILANT! Remove those valuables from your car, before a street criminal does it for you! We're on Facebook you know...

- Your Neighbors at the Midtown Ponce Security Alliance

A VERY SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR COMMUNITY SPONSORS WHO PROVIDE A MAJOR ENHANCEMENT TO YOUR PATROL'S EFFECTIVENESS:

Coro Realty Advisors, LLC | Post Parkside

Fifth Group Restaurants - Ecco, South City Kitchen, La Tavola and El Taco

Midtown Tire, Inc.

AND THE MANY RESIDENTS AND BUSINESS MEMBERS OF THE MPSA