Over the past six months, 800 crimes have been committed within a two-mile radius of Wesley Chapel Road, according to a report by CrimeMapping.com.
That figure is misleading, said Capt. A. Mears of the DeKalb South Precinct, in a public safety panel discussion Saturday. Focusing on the half-mile radius known as the Wesley Chapel corridor — he said 442 crimes have been committed — mostly assault and battery.
DeKalb Police Chief Cedric L. Alexander said police need the support of the community , the courts, and the legislative support of public safety reform to keep repeat offenders off the street.
“It’s only about 6 percent of the bad folks out there that are creating 100 percent of the problems for us,” said Alexander. Many are juveniles as young as 14 or 15, he said.
“We’re finding ourselves interfacing over and over with the same criminals, our young people out there committing these crimes, and that’s where we need community support.”
Community members expressed frustration over slow response times. When Kevin Chapman recently heard gunshots near his home in the Snapfinger Manor subdivision, he said a police officer told him “if we don’t see a body, then it’s not a priority.”
Alexander reassured those present that no crime is considered low priority.
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