*The James Report

Hi All,

After last month’s chaotic 2431 CAPS meeting it was clear we had to rethink our role in the process. The meetings have become unproductive and the police refer to them as “bitch sessions”. Most people we know share that view. Instead of making a list of crime problems, some friends and I made a list of CAPS problems.

CAPS is supposed to be the forum for us and the police to discuss problems and address concerns. Citizens are supposed to run the meeting, not the police and no subject is considered off- limits. If the police cannot assist directly, they are to connect people with the resources needed to solve the problem. It resembles in theory the old “cop on the beat” who once helped with whatever was needed.

One major gap in our meeting has been the absence of Problem Solving. The most telling evidence of this is the attitude amongst newcomers and regulars that CAPS is a waste of time. The climate is further denigrated by the fact that there is so much criminal activity in this beat that people find non- solutions infuriating. Those feelings give way to rage or utter hopelessness almost immediately and that is where progress usually ends.

The mechanism provided by the police for Problem Solving is a chain called the “crime triangle” It’s linked to a series of questions that are standard for any Problem Solving scenario. We brought our own, in poster form and kind of insisted on using it. Going through the process cannot help but conclude in a solution.

That’s where it will be sticky going forward. It is relatively easy to plug in a problem and get an answer. It is going to be a lot more difficult when the solutions begin taxing police attitude and resources. At that time it will be clear, I think that Rogers Park has greater needs that its current level of police resources can provide. Over time we can use the system to pressure the City into supporting our efforts to reduce crime and just as importantly, the fear of crime.

CAPS, whether one likes it or thinks it ridiculous, is the interface between us and the Chicago Police. The only other option is dialing 911. There is no way to consistently go around this process and get far enough to make lasting change.

That can feel unfortunate. A person ought to be able to walk into the station house, explain a problem, and receive resolution. Sometimes it used to be that simple. It just isn’t now. CAPS isn’t a perfect community policing program. It has received consistently low marks on the very Problem Solving that is supposed to be at its core. But not only do other systems also have failings, this is the only one available to us at this time.

Another failing is the mandatory one hour length of CAPS meetings. Due to overtime constraints, I’ve heard the City ordered all meetings to end after one hour. You may have ten times more crime and complexity in your beat, but you still receive the same one hour to resolve your issues that the quietest beat in the city gets. That is an outrage, and needs to change right now. On our end, we will do a better job packaging our concerns, when possible in advance to help save time in the formal meetings.

The next thing is the ultimate resolution of problems. On the issue of kids severely beating each other on the way home from schools, we assembled a plan to extend the supervision offered at school to the surrounding streets by combining police and citizen presence after school. This may appear to mean the police are forcing us to do their jobs for them. However with entrenched poverty, gangs and drug sales all around us our role is greater than simply calling 911 after we have lost control.

All kids have disagreements and sometimes fights occur. However one result of our kids living in environments that tolerate violence is that they have a greater threshold for violence themselves. This results in grievous injuries in fights that under normal circumstances would be briefly bruising encounters. A child having the right to an education includes the right to obtain it in safety.

I often hear it said that the parents should just handle this stuff. That isn’t happening, and we can’t afford to trade more children hoping for what ought to be. The police certainly have a role, and part of this process is tracking results to use them more effectively as well. We should not hesitate to be demanding of our police as long as we are fair.

Back to the beat meeting. Our goal was to begin aggressively solving problems. We succeeded in beginning that process. Going forward, we need all the help we can get to solve 2431’s issues. The crime triangle process should take about ten-fifteen minutes. That means we deal effectively with two or three major issues every month. That’s considerable. Some, like the 1345 Lunt building, will require monthly checkups for a long time to come. The bottom line is this: It’s our beat, our meeting, and our responsibility.

One final note. I’m compiling a list of all the graffiti locations in 2431. That includes Morse, Lunt, Farwell and Pratt from Clark Street to the lake. I’m going to call 311 and give them the list every single day until it gets cleaned up. If you all want to help, call 311 every day and give them the same list. If they start getting 20-30 calls a day, maybe we can stop the gangs from using the neighborhood as a billboard. I’m no longer going to see that everywhere I go in our neighborhood.