On Feb. 24 the Seattle Police Department announced the creation of a “dedicated emphasis … to address hot spots” of gun violence in response to the large spike in murders and near-misses as we move into 2012 (nine murders and 11 aggravated assaults so far this year).
Precincts will soon deploy Violence Prevention Emphasis Patrols (VPEP), according to a department press release, in response to “Recent community concerns (that) have ranged from civility violations, assaults, shootings and homicides. By providing a dedicated group of officers to address these problems in our communities, we hope to improve our ability to prevent gun violence and other crimes as well as respond to calls for service within each precinct. The dedicated emphasis will work collaboratively with neighborhood businesses to ensure that residents and visitors can be in these areas safely and without fear.”
The Herald spoke with Southwest Precinct Operations Lt. Pierre Davis to get an idea of how VPEP patrols will be implemented in our own backyard.
Lt. Davis said Southwest Precinct officers will focus attention on nightlife hotspots such as Alki and California Ave.
“We are going to be implementing foot beats and other innovative patrols to keep our fingers on the pulse,” he said, “It’s something that we have already done in establishing a good rapport between our bar owners, sergeants and community police officers.”
In reaching out to bar and nightclub owners, Lt. Davis said they will be encouraged to contact the precinct if potentially dangerous people or situations are brewing (or, of course, call 911 if the situation has already erupted).
“Here in the Southwest corridor we just do not have (violent crime) to that magnitude (of other precincts), although we do get individuals … that come and frequent some of our cool spots here,” he said.
VPEP patrols for the Southwest Precinct will not consist of a steady number of officers, Lt. Davis said, but fluctuate depending on staffing levels and hot spot needs as determined by patrol officer intelligence and community or business owner feedback.
