If you're out buying drugs, don't expect the police to keep you safe. This wisdom was one of the pieces of advice offered by Durham Police Chief Jose Lopez when asked about safety at Duke University.
Lopez met with community members at The River Church in north Durham Monday in the first of two public forums designed to allow Durham residents to ask the chief questions. Approximately 50 people attended the meeting, including a large contingent from the Argonne Hills neighborhood.
"What I wanted to do is come out to the community and find out what it is you're looking for from your police department," Lopez told the assembled audience.
The forum comes following public criticism that the Durham Police Department failed to inform residents of a spate of robberies targeting Hispanics that occurred in December and January.
Among many issues, Lopez was asked about safety around the University.
"I think it is as safe as the residents and the students make it," he responded. "If they go out and get totally trashed to where they can't really see very well, it's hard for them to see somebody going into their pockets."
Many of the attendees' concerns focused on gang issues in Durham. Lopez was questioned about funding and tactics to combat gangs, along with their presence in local schools.
One resident pressed Lopez to evaluate the size of Durham's gang problem.
"I think we have a problem that pretty much goes with the size of the city," he said.
He emphasized the role of community members in combating gangs, which he described as largely a "youth problem."
"We can't arrest our way out of this," Lopez said. "It takes a city to do it."
Bishop Arnold Harris, pastor of the God First, People Second Church in downtown Durham also came to the forum and said he was concerned about inner-city youth but left the forum unsatisfied.
"The majority of the problem is in the inner city, and so I was concerned if the chief would do any different tactics or would he put together any different programs that are going to be more effective to help reach more at-risk youth," Harris said. "He addressed some of the concerns, but at the same time, I wasn't fully comfortable, because it seemed like he was moreso just kind of rehearsing his routine."
Community crime prevention efforts also concerned some attendees, including Beverly Rush, the neighborhood watch coordinator for Argonne Hills.
"That's the key to crime prevention-reporting suspicious activity," said the 24-year Durham resident.
She described how her neighborhood partnered with DPD starting in April 2005 after residents' complaints about trespassing went unanswered. She said her efforts caused the police to take a greater interest in her community.
"You must be a united community for that to work, and it has worked in our community," she said.
Although Rush reported hearing "random gunfire" and seeing bullet holes in a local gas station, she expressed confidence in Lopez.
"I think he's doing a super job in the first six months," Rush said.
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