Mayor Glenn Cunningham unveiled the first phase of his new plan to fight crime on Thursday at a community meeting at St. Michael’s Church on Virginia Avenue.
Using the South District as the starting point, Cunningham promised to reduce crime in Jersey City by initially focusing on areas riddled with excessive drug trafficking.
Cunningham plans to use increased police presence, community involvement, and counseling programs for first-time offenders. A map showing the drug-heavy areas in the South District highlights an area that is 20 blocks by three blocks.
"We’re going to put the heat on them [drug dealers] like they’ve never felt before," Cunningham told a church filled with local residents. But he insisted the new initiative is not primarily focused on "locking people up," and called the plan a holistic one that attempts to fight crime by deterring it as well as removing it.
While approximately 600 police officers are currently divided into four police districts equally, the reorganization allows the Police Department to increase police presence in one area by shifting police officers from areas less problematic.
Referred to as the Partnership Against Drugs, the plan calls for an interdepartmental approach to stifling drug activity in neighborhoods that have been identified as "drug corridors." To combat the drug market rooted in such areas, the Police Department intends to work with the Hudson County Municipal Drug Task Force and the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office.
Cunningham also added that the federal Drug Enforcement Agency has agreed to open up an office in Jersey City to aid these efforts. Cunningham would not give a date, but said it would happen soon.
The city’s Neighborhood Improvement District, which refurbishes abandoned buildings and poorly maintenanced properties, is also joining the effort. Abandoned properties are often havens for drug-dealers and drug-users, said Deputy Police Chief Peter Behrens.
"Nothing succeeds like success," Behrens said. "If this succeeds here [South District] then we can take this initiative to other parts of the city."
In order to achieve that success, Cunningham, Behrens and Police Director James Carter stressed the importance of community involvement.
"To make these neighborhoods golden," Behrens said, "it can’t be a police initiative. It has to be a community initiative." He added that neighborhood residents should call the police with any information about drug-related activity in their area, even if it is an anonymous call.
Behrens also said that the police department would focus on the smaller crimes in the community that affect the quality of the neighborhood, such as graffiti, urinating in the streets, and disturbingly loud radios.
In addition to the added police presence, Cunningham also stressed the need for creating opportunities for youths. Instead of developing new programs, however, Cunningham said that existing programs should be working hand-in-hand with the Police Department. For example, he wants the Urban Employment Training program to take a larger role in the community. First-time offenders and at-risk juveniles, Cunningham said, should be directed to such job training centers before they become "career criminals."
Also, Cunningham vowed to start a recruiting program for the Police Department that seeks out people interested in joining the force as well as assisting them in preparing for the required exams.
Carter said the department would like to see more African-American police officers on the force. According to Carter, the Police Department now employs less than 50 African-American police officers.
"We have to have a Police Department that reflects the makeup of the city," Cunningham said.
Community speaks out, offers help
LaVern Washington has lived on Rudolph Avenue in Jersey City most of her life. Throughout the years she has seen a rise and decline in crime in her neighborhood. Washington came to the mayor’s forum Thursday night to listen to Cunningham and his supporters and to voice her opinion on why crime continues to plague the city.
Washington told the panel, “We’re not doing enough to help the boys who come out of prison. We need to help these kids get jobs. We need programs to educate people so they can stop going in and out of jail.”
Washington was cheered by her peers in the audience after her statements. Cunningham said programs are in place to help people find jobs and seek better educational opportunities.
Caroline Nelson was also a member of the audience. Nelson has been the director of C-Line, a community outreach services program on Martin Luther King Drive, for more than three years. She came out to support Cunningham’s plan to put an end to drugs in the neighborhood.
“I think he is very sincere in what he is doing,” Nelson said. “I expect to see results, because he got everybody involved.”
Nelson is one of several community leaders who has pledged a partnership with Cunningham on his initiative.
“We may not be able to save the whole world, but we can make a difference in the community,” she said.
Cunningham’s staff handed out pamphlets on fighting crime. They advise residents to report drug activity by calling 547-5391 and to report other disturbances to the police at 547-5477.
Reporter staff writer Eugene Mulero contributed to this report.