DEL.ICIO.USATLANTA POLICE CHIEF RICHARD PENNINGTON
Q&A: Atlanta chief: You have to respond to perception
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Crime in Atlanta is a hot topic after the recent slaying of a bartender at a Grant Park restaurant. A grass-roots advocacy group has been created out of concerns that the city is getting more dangerous, with city dwellers reporting more robberies, carjackings and muggings. Mayor Shirley Franklin announced that she plans to push for more police officers. Last week, we spoke to Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington about crime, community fear and what he’s doing about it.
JENNI GIRTMAN /AJC
Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington says actual crime rates in Atlanta neighborhoods don’t always correspond to people’s fears, but you have to deal with both.
Q: What’s your take on this public outcry about what some perceive as a crime wave in Atlanta?
A: I definitely feel as though citizens are quite disturbed about, you know, when they see a rash of crimes going on in their neighborhood. And I understand what they’re going through, because I would be concerned, too, as a private citizen if you had just one burglary in my neighborhood where somebody would come in and kick a door in or shoot an innocent person.
Q: Do you think that the public outcry has been warranted?
A: I don’t know if it’s warranted or not. I’m just saying that I understand. … I think what happens is that people get fearful, people think that it’s going to happen to them next. And so they respond. They put pressure on us to do something about it. And that’s what we have to do. We have to respond back to them.
Q: Are you seeing major spikes in crime in some communities that are making the most noise, such as Grant Park or East Atlanta or Little Five Points?
A: I think what happened in Grant Park was the fact that you had a murder — you had someone killed. And we haven’t arrested the suspects, the perpetrators. So people get a little edgy.
Q: So, aside from this killing in Grant Park and some of these other more high-profile crimes that have occurred, these particular communities are not seeing major spikes in crime?
A: Well, according to the data that we have, there are some neighborhoods where the data don’t go along with what has actually transpired in their community. We’ve had reductions [in crime] in a lot of those neighborhoods. And then, some of the neighborhoods that we’ve had an increase in burglary and property crimes, those neighborhoods haven’t had a large outcry.
Q: What do you attribute [the public outcry] to?
A: These community groups work closely together. When they hear about one crime, they e-mail their neighbors and then you get a barrage of e-mails. I think they just respond to what they hear. And a lot of times, perception to them is reality.
Q: So, as the Police Department, you have to respond to perception, even if it’s not reality?
A: Oh, absolutely — you have to respond to perception. Because I think perception becomes reality.
Q: What about the furloughs? Are you seeing a significant impact on police services?
A: I haven’t seen a significant impact on police services, as of today. Now that doesn’t mean there’s not going to be an impact.
Q: Do you think that there will be down the road?
A: I think, at some point, yes. I think it depends on the resources. If they’re not there, yes, I think you would see an impact.
Q: How much of a role do you think this crime trend of thieves kicking in doors to get flat-screen TVs has played into this perception that violent crimes are on the rise?
A: I think it’s played a big role, in terms of perception of crime in some of these neighborhoods. … People get very afraid that it might happen to them. And they might be in the house. … They might be in the bathroom when somebody kicks in the front door. And then, when they come in and confront these criminals, they feel as though the criminal might hurt them or something.
Q: Do you think that Atlanta is becoming less safe?
A: No, I don’t feel it’s becoming unsafe. I think we have enough resources to deal with it. We just have to find out, as law enforcement officers, why these young men are so brazen now.
Q: Tell me what you are doing specifically to address these residents’ concerns in Grant Park, East Atlanta and elsewhere.
A: My job as the police chief is to try to make sure that we put resources into those neighborhoods and try to alleviate the fears that they might have and have a presence. … I talked to [the police major in charge of the police zone that includes Grant Park]. He told me that he’s putting in additional foot patrol beats. And they’re patrolling the business areas — especially after the young man that was killed in the bar. … And we’re looking at our crime trends in the neighborhoods. We’re trying to beef up patrols and bring in those additional supplemental units — traffic, [narcotics] and other units — just to have more police presence.
Q: Mayor Franklin recently said she plans to push for 2,000 officers. What do you think about these comments?
A: Well, I’ve always advocated for 2,000 police officers. … If we hadn’t scaled back on the recruiting unit [due to the furloughs] and the mayor told us next week she wanted 2,000 officers, we think we could have accomplished that before she left office.
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