Street Gangs Top Poll Concern

Street gangs, sex crimes, and street crimes topped voter concerns in our May crime poll. White collar crime, representing no threat to personal safety, fared poorly.

Clearly, drug crimes, though often tied to the top three, must be addressed separately. These will be the subject of later articles.

In retrospect, I'd have to say the poll was biased. Four out of five possible choices were inherently violent to begin with. Even with numbers up in the American Idol range, different choices would have produced different results.

The available choices might easily have been: identity theft, stock fraud, counterfeiting, breach of trust, and house burglary. In that group, the "people's choice" would likely be house burglary. So much for my objectivity.

I liked a survey recently carried out for the Ottawa City Police. The police wanted a lead on where to direct their resources. Speeders, drunk drivers, and people running red lights and stop signs were the priorities. Cyclists who disobeyed traffic laws also got some play, as did aggressive panhandling.

I liked these numbers because they suggest that Ottawa may be a pretty good place to live. It said citizens must look both ways before crossing a street but suggested they needn't fear getting mugged while waiting for a light to change.

Unfortunately, the police survey was a little tarnished by one disturbing finding. Many people were reluctant to go out-of-doors alone after dark. The prevalence of a night-time siege mentality is a little scary. Then suddenly, I realized that I too rarely go out after dark, and when I have to, I prefer to be locked safely in my car. Somewhere in that is a message I don't like very much.