By Leslie Collins
Northeast News
September 14, 2011

Following the shootings of three youth on the Plaza, a discussion about violent crime ignited and a blame game followed suit.

Kansas Citians pointed fingers at inept parents, the police department, the city.

City officials enacted a tougher minor curfew with hefty fines and began offering more evening activities for youth.

But not all the responsibility can fall on the police department, the city or the parents.

Solving Kansas City’s struggle with violent crime begins with “you,” said Kansas City Police Department Deputy Chief Kevin Masters.

“If you really want to stop crime, you have to be involved in the process,” Masters said. “If you’re not involved in your community, if you’re not truly involved in the life of the people you supposedly love that are committing a crime, then you’re part of the problem, not the solution.”

Masters spoke about Kansas City’s violent crime and how citizens can lower those statistics during the Aug. 31 Kansas City Public Safety and Emergency Services Committee meeting.

This year, 77 murders have occurred compared to 73 murders in 2010. More than 70 percent of the victims were between the ages of 17 to 34, he said, and 76 percent of the victims were black.

In 2010, there were 15 homicide cases where police believed they knew who committed the crime. However, witnesses failed to come forward and due to lack of evidence, the prosecution was unable to develop a case. KCPD faced the same problem in 2011 with 12 homicide cases.

“That means there’s 12 killers walking around because people in the neighborhood and people who are related to these people have failed to come forward and talk about what occurred,” he said. “In some cases, they are continuing to kill and continuing to create violent crimes.”

Homicides aren’t the only violent crimes plaguing Kansas City.

From Jan. 1 to Aug. 30, 2010, there were 657 cases of firearm related assaults and 1,282 victims, and during the same time period in 2011, there were 700 cases and 1,376 victims.

“We believe many of these instances that occurred could have been prevented,” Masters said.

Most of the homicides or firearm assaults occur over trivial matters, he said. In the heat of the moment, the suspect usually doesn’t have a gun and must travel somewhere else to retrieve a weapon, he said.

It only takes one person to intervene to try to calm the suspect down and make them think about their actions, he said.

“It’s all about intervention,” Masters told Northeast News. “Anytime we can make a suspect or would be suspect pause, that pause is the difference between a violent crime occurring or not. I truly believe that.”

Friends, neighbors and other loved ones need to step forward and hold those they know accountable, he said.

“I’m convinced that will stop a lot more violence than putting 200 more cops on the street,” he said during an interview with Northeast News.

East Patrol officer offers insight

During an interview with Northeast News, Kansas City’s East Patrol Division Community Interaction Officer Jason Cooley said 90 percent of crime happens in the dark. Kansas Citians should leave their porch lights on at night to deter criminals, which also creates better visibility for residents to spot suspicious activity, he said. Cooley also conducts security surveys for homes and businesses free of charge.

Cooley stressed that the community needs to form a partnership with the police department.

“The community has to follow through,” he said. “You can’t turn a blind eye to the crime or it’s going to remain.

“Somebody’s going to have to stand up at some point in time and say, ‘Enough is enough. I’ll be a witness or I will prosecute. I will show up in court. I will testify. I will do what it takes.’

“Once criminals realize they don’t have a safe haven anymore, they’ll move on to somewhere else.”

In Historic Northeast, one issue officers are struggling with is the number of illegal immigrants. Fearing their status, illegal immigrants don’t report crimes or refuse to cooperate with police, he said.

“It’s creating an issue, honestly,” he said.

Some children of illegal immigrants are in gangs and are confident of the fact their parents won’t report them because they’re here illegally.

“So, they (gang members) have free reign in their minds,” Cooley said.

Other witnesses may refuse to report crimes because there are warrants out for their arrest, he said.

Asked if calling the TIPS Hotline anonymously would be a solution, Cooley said yes. The TIPS Hotline doesn’t record telephone numbers and respects anonymity.

Masters said officers would rather receive an anonymous tip than nothing at all.

A number of residents have the misconception that the justice system fails even if they do report a crime, Masters said.

“There are examples where we’ve arrested suspects for a shooting and within a week, that person’s walking through the neighborhood,” Masters said. “What people think is generally a., the police didn’t do anything, and b., ‘Man that person beat the rap and nothing’s going to happen.'”

However, residents need to realize the case is pending on the shooting, the suspect sought out legal representation and posted bond, Masters said.

“Some day, they will go to court and some day, they will probably be in prison,” he said.

Witnesses of crimes who fear reporting an incident due to retaliation, shouldn’t.

With one hand, Masters can count the number of witnesses who died as a direct result of their testimony against a suspect. That’s spanning Masters’ 26-year career in law enforcement and the thousands of cases prosecuted each year in Kansas City. Masters equated witness murders to urban myths and dramatized television shows.

“I think suspects thrive on that and hope surviving witnesses or victims will buy into that fear,” he said.

And that only exacerbates the violent crime issue in Kansas City.

Both Masters and Cooley stressed witnesses and victims must report what they saw and be willing to testify in court. When suspects aren’t held accountable, they become repeat offenders, Masters said.

Tips for reporting a crime

If a crime is in progress, call 911. Pay attention to the suspect’s vehicle and note the make, model, color, license plate or anything else distinct about the vehicle like a missing side mirror or body damage. Note which direction the suspect or vehicle is fleeing.

For the suspect, note his or her race, sex, hairstyle, scars, tattoos, missing teeth or other distinct details. Cooley said details of the suspect’s clothing are helpful, but only if police locate the suspect soon.

To report a past crime, residents may call the TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-8477. Masters said cell phone pictures or video of the incident are also helpful and can be sent anonymously.