Asbury Park Cops Spread Net to Halt Violence
By GARRETT STASSE
Asbury Park cops have been working with law enforcement agencies from here to Washington to stop the shootings that have the city reeling.
Deputy Chief Mark Kinmon said investigators from here, surrounding towns, two county agencies, the State Police and unnamed federal agencies have been gathering intelligence for more than a year to try to end the violence that caused three shootings in one week on the west side.
City cops are on a zero tolerance crime crackdown, arresting some 6,000 people so far this year, compared to 3,000 in all of last year.
The Monmouth County Sheriffs Office and Prosecutors Office and the Interlaken Police Department* have been sending re-enforcements to patrol, investigate and arrest, he said.
We talk (to law enforcement) people all over the county, Kinmon said. Were getting very good information and were acting on it. Weve got some very good leads (on the latest shooting) Were pleased with the progress were making.
Kinmon declined to give specific details.
A good majority of the incidents are not random incidents. he said. In most cases the victims were targeted.
Weve been very successful in the number and quality of arrests. The State Police offer us more than enough assistance and the federal governments here, too. Interlaken sends three or four officers here every other week to patrol for street crimes.
All the help has allowed the department to create a tracking system with a lot of statistical data on crimes and the times and places theyre committed. Were assigning a majority of our patrols to those places at those times.
The 70-member department is short-handed, Kinmon told the City Council, but even adequate staffing wont resolve the underlying causes. Kids need education, guidance and activities that lead them away from gangs, he said, calling on council, churches, civic organizations and others to create solutions.
Were going to meet with the prosecutors office and staff to see what we can do right away and in the long term to address these issues. But we need staffing. We cannot continue to police as we did 20 years ago with the staff we have now.
Councilman Ed Johnson said staffing has to be addressed.
City cops are on a zero tolerance crime crackdown, arresting some 6,000 people so far this year, compared to 3,000 in all of last year.
We have to send a message that the community is safe and becoming safer. We have to make the hard choices (in the coming budget negotiations) where were going to spend the money we have. We cannot afford not to do this. Were going to have to garner to do this so our young people know they have hope and opportunities for the future, he said.
Mayor Kevin Sanders said he will meet with county, state and federal officials to see what can be done. A high priority is surveillance cameras in high-crime areas, he said.
Werner Baumgartner, Fifth Avenue, told of an incident years ago in the northeast corner of the city when someone fired shots that went through his car and struck a woman washing dishes in her kitchen.
Im afraid were seeing dj vu here again, he said.
Denise Richardson, Ridge Avenue called the school districts decision to close the high school for two days because of a shooting-related fight stupid.
Think about it: If theyre not in school, where are they going to be? You can bring an army in here and it wont stop the shooting. Start in the Middle School. That schools so bad its ridiculous. The children are running that school.
Pastor P. Brown said, The difficulty is that many of those perpetuating the crime wave dont want jobs. They make money selling drugs. You have to understand theres a population recreation wont reach.
The community is scared. The community has concerns that are coming to the surface. People see no opportunities for jobs or education. Theyre afraid theyre being pushed out of town.
The Rev. David Parreott Jr. said the problems begin at home.
They have to see what their children are doing and know who theyre hanging around with, he said. We have to address this in the home.
*Clarification
This story about Asbury Park’s Police Department did not fully explain Interlaken’s role. Deputy Chief Mark Kinmon said police officers from Interlaken patrolled city streets every couple of weeks, which was confirmed by the Interlaken Mayor Robert Wolf.
The story neglected to say that borough officers patrol on their own time for training and are not paid by Interlaken or another agency for those efforts. Wolf said he supports his officers’ dedication to duty but wants it made clear that Interlaken is not paying to do it.
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