Pot times July 20, 2005
West Augustine Gets Funds To Fight Crime
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1146/a07.htmlNewshawk: http://www.november.org
Pubdate: Tue, 19 Jul 2005 WEST AUGUSTINE GETS FUNDS TO FIGHT CRIME
Source: St. Augustine Record (FL)
Copyright: 2005 The St. Augustine Record
Contact:
editor@staugustine.com
Website: http://www.staugustine.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/771
Author: Peter Guinta
Program Also Would Support Positive Change In Neighborhood
WEST AUGUSTINE -- On a visit to Calvin Peete Park last year, U.S. Rep.
John Mica, R-Winter Park, found an empty cocaine bag on a playground, and later
watched as two men completed a crack sale on Pearl Street.
On Monday, Mica recalled those two vivid images while announcing that West
Augustine had been named a Weed and Seed Community, the only Florida
neighborhood so designated this year among 22 nationwide.
"I was shocked when I saw the conditions here," Mica said Monday at
Murray Middle School. "We had to do something, so we made a
commitment to make changes. No young people should grow up in a
neighborhood where they find drug bags on their playground."
A Weed and Seed designation means West Augustine could receive up to $250,000 a
year for five years to pay for aggressive law enforcement, community policing,
crime prevention and neighborhood restoration.
Law enforcement hopes weeding can remove West Augustine's bad elements, but
Richard H. Schneider, professor of urban and regional planning at the
University of Florida in Gainesville, said this type of program does not
guarantee success.
Schneider, who specializes in crime prevention, said, "( Weed and Seed )
does work in some areas, but not everywhere. It certainly increases
community awareness and spirit, but crimes have been diminishing
everywhere."
He said the success depends on the extent of community involvement.
Derek Hankerson, project coordinator for St. Johns County Housing and
Community Services, said West Augustine has a long cycle of poverty and crime
that needs to be broken.
Hankerson served on the committee that pushed for the Weed and Seed designation.
"This isn't a federal grant program, it's a strategy," he said.
"We'll weed out negative influences -- code violations, prostitution, drug
dealing, open air drinking -- and seed in a positive environment using social
service organizations and West Augustine churches."
The committee meets in two weeks to discuss how it will apply for funds.
The application is due in October.
Joel Bolante, chief of staff for the Sheriff's Office, said Weed money would pay
overtime for new and already existing law enforcement efforts in West Augustine.
"We want to create a climate that will encourage the private sector,"
Bolante said. "Weed and Seed requires a collaborative effort.
But previously, whenever we would do our sweeps, no one would come behind us
with economic development."
Sweeping out the criminals wouldn't necessarily mean they would go somewhere
else, officials said.
Bolante said, "That's always an unintended consequence when you focus on
one area. But the U.S. Attorney office will prosecute those cases.
Criminals know that if they're prosecuted under federal law, they'll do at least
85 percent of their ( prison ) sentence."
Also, he added, some criminals will seek jobs in an improved economic climate
instead of committing crimes.
Schneider said proving the effectiveness of Weed and Seed is difficult because
crime is dropping nationally.
Some factors include the ending of the crack epidemic, more unwanted children
not being born, keeping more criminals in jail for longer sentences, the police
working smarter, better enforcement of domestic violence laws and more people
staying at home during the day, he said.
"There are a lot of reasons, but the general fact is that crime is
decreasing," Schneider said.
Weed and Seed can work, depending upon how it's administered and "if
community groups and local citizens" are involved, he said.
The Rev. Richard Madison of Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church, 280
Duval St., said his church will lend support to the Weed and Seed idea.
"Quite a few informational meetings were convened at West Augustine
community churches," Madison said.
Tabernacle Baptist hosted the very first meeting a year ago.
William Daniels, law enforcement coordinator for the U.S. Attorney's
Office, said the program's first priority is identifying the area's bad elements
and dealing with them.
"West Augustine is not asking for a handout, it's asking for the
tools," Daniels said. "Keep the end goal in mind. That
will help give people hope. Give them hope and you change their
lives."
Weed and Seed
What: Weed and Seed is a combined effort by local, state and federal agencies
founded in 1991 to weed out violent crime and gang activity while seeding the
community with social services and economic revitalization.
How it is funded: Federal grants from $30,000 to $300,000 pay for aggressive law
enforcement, community policing, crime prevention and treatment, and
neighborhood restoration.
Who runs it: The program is administered through the U.S. Department of
Justice.
How many: There are 350 Weed and Feed communities nationwide. West St.
Augustine is the only new Weed and Feed community in Florida this year.
