Is it just me, or has Lincoln Police Chief Tom Casady been a bit of a downer lately? He seems to be really promoting the notion that Lincoln isn't as safe as you think it is. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. Lincolnites, as a general rule, like to think of our city as a happy, mostly crime-free place. Sometimes a little slap to the face is good for keeping our heads out of the clouds.
Still, I wonder what Casady's angle is. There's the cynical interpretation: Casady's negative tone is designed to build support for LPD, thus raising its budget and increasing its prominence in the city. That would be a very typical government bureaucrat approach to protecting one's job.
Then there's the ominous interpretation: Casady knows more than he lets on. His warnings are just the tip of the iceberg; if we don't do something soon, we could find ourselves in an ugly situation.
Or maybe he just has these topics on his mind these days and he isn't trying to be negative at all.
I'm sure there are other interpretations as well. What's yours?
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A lot of the crime trends here are, ultimately, tied to demographics. As Lincoln grows (during the past 16 years, the population has gone from 191K to 241K), it will eventually reach a size where there is a critical mass of people who, for whatever reason, find violent crime to be a justifiable option. (Personally, I think Lincoln’s status as a government/university town is one of the main reasons we’ve yet to hit this critical mass, but that’s another discussion.)
Also, it seems that for a lot of people, the Journal Star‘s “Core” series was the first time they realized that the city’s “worst” neighborhoods are no longer along 27th St., a fact that is likely indirectly tied to the assorted 27th/Antelope Valley revitalization projects over the past 10 years.
Finally, a good number of Lincolnites have a perception that the LPD collective has a small-town cop mentality, and only goes after the low-hanging fruit (house parties, O St., etc.). Whether this perception if justified or not, it’s certainly in Casady’s best interest to remain people that while Lincoln is not Omaha, it’s not Columbus or Broken Bow either.
collectively; is justified; to remind.
My interpretation was that he was trying to show support for Mayor Beutler’s initiatives with neighborhood development. He was pointing out a few neighborhoods that could develop problems reminiscent of Omaha’s problem neighborhoods if we’re not careful.
Do I detect a bit too much cynicism here? How about this take (which is the one I put faith in): Chief Tom is concerned about the community for the sake of the community, and part of being an effective police force means keeping community relations positive, and trying to educate Lincoln residents to some compelling trends.
As noted above, Lincoln does continue to grow at a steady rate, yet the overall level of crime in the city has not tracked with that population growth. We are very fortunate to live in a mid-sized city with a relatively low crime rate, especially considering the continued population growth AND that the LPD budget has been cut. Considering how so many people in this city object to seeing taxes or fees raised to support almost ANYTHING public, Chief Tom’s thoughts reflect good, sober, and strategic insight to the state of the community, rather than a tactical bureaucratic power play.
I should also say, the state of community-police relations in Lincoln are excellent compared to North Omaha or other larger metropolitan cities where some cops are simply out of control. For those of us who have lived in such cities, there is no need to elaborate or cite the numerous examples of cops racially profiling, pumping guys full of lead during weddings, or intimidating skateboarders.
Its good to see that Chief Tom has taken a leadership position in community relations besides just being the administrative head of the department.
A little cynicism is healthy, no? 😊
Seriously, I don’t mean any disrespect to Chief Casady. The guy has loads of my respect for not only starting a blog, but writing so candidly on it. It’s just my nature to ask questions when people in power do or don’t do notable things. Since Chief Casady has put himself in the news a lot lately, he’s getting my attention right now. That’s all.
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