On Saturday, October 21, 2017, the Oak Park Community Council Security Team held its third of a series of meetings to organize Neighborhood Watch Groups. We were joined by San Diego Police Community Relations Officer, Akaan Thomas, who spoke about safety tips and formally welcomed our four new block captains and volunteers. Sonia Diaz, Council President, presented a map of key crime area hotspots identified by residents in the community and from previous postings on NextDoor and was compared with official crime statistics gathered by SDPD. What was interesting to note is that residents often underreport crimes happening in their community out of fear or because they believe that the police response is inefficient. Strategies were discussed on how to report crimes, when to call 9-1-1 vs non-emergency number, and ask for call reference numbers for proper case follow up. Important take away lessons:
- The best way to partner with SDPD is to provide timely, accurate, comprehensive reporting of criminal and suspicious activity.
- The best way to get more support from SDPD is for multiple people who have observed or are affected by incidents to report them consistently. Relying on NextDoor alone will NOT be enough because the police do not have access to NextDoor Oak Park posts.
- Reports for potholes, illegal dumping, homeless encampments, graffiti, etc. can be reported through Get It Done App. This way, a case number is assigned and the report is routed to the appropriate department. If you don't have internet access, then call the appropriate City phone number (see end of this newsletter) and ask for a Reference Number. If you call 911, be sure to ask for a Reference Number so that if you get disconnected or you want to see if patrols were dispatched, there will be a record of the call and a way to follow up.
- Block Captains are an effective tool to coordinate communication between police and Oak Park Community Council. When reporting issues to SDPD, provide the same info to your Block Captain. All incident reports will be stored in one central location so that the Block Captains and the Oak Park Community Council can easily follow up on the status of these incidents.
During November-December, block captains will start reaching out to their neighbors and recruiting people for their teams. If you would like to know who your are block captain is, or, if you'd like to join Neighborhood Watch please contact Bruce Thompson or call (619) 341-1063.
Officer Thomas addressing Neighborhood Watch Group on Saturday, Oct 21st. |
