"Lot of people want to blame the homeless for crime in this town, I can assure you homeless are not the ones stealing your stuff"

The above quote was by event organizer Gene Bass before he introduced Pamlyn Millsap, one of the speakers. Please read the post below for background on the event. I did not stay for the question-answer part of the evening and left when the speakers finished.

Information and how the community can be a part of making Eureka safe were the key themes at tonight's Operation Safe Streets Forum. The media had asked who this group is. Event Organizer Gene Bass said it was him and five or six other people. I got permission form Jeff Lamoree, who I know personally to use his name as well as one of the group members.

Mr. Bass,  openied his introductory remarks with, "I have got four kids. As a kid, I have grown up here. I was comfortable in this town. Kids used to own this town. Now, I don't let my kids go too far." he expressed he  would like to see this community be like the one he grew up in. "Without a safe community, he said there would be no jobs. Families won't stay because of the crime.

He continued with saying that instead of asking what the police can do, the community needs to get involved. "They are maxed out," he said referring to the Eureka Police Department. "Don't let the criminals get comfortable."

Joe Filgas, who owns Cafe Nooner in Old Town and Henderson Center spoke next. He is a part of Eureka Main Street's Neighborhood Watch. He said they do not confront, they talk to people in Old Town and Downtown Eureka. "We watch, take notes and report and engage everyone." They have helped tourists, they have directed people to local services. Visibility has helped the criminal element know they are being watch. The walks by the neighborhood watch are at random.

EPD Chief Andy Mills was the next speaker. When the crowd broke into applause greeting him, he quipped, "You might want to hold the applause until I tell you the crime data."

"To have this many people concerned about public safety and take time out is something else," said Chief Mills. " He said he wanted to recognize some people in the audience who are policy makers and leaders and can make decisions that impact public safety. He mentioned District Attorney Maggie Fleming and the crowd broke out in applause. Chief Mills said that Ms. Fleming had already met with police chiefs in the morning and informing on what her plans are, what she can prosecute. "She is already making a difference." He then recognized Eureka Council members Natalie Arroyo and Kim Bergel and Fourth District Supervisor Virginia Bass. The crowd enthusiastically clapped when Ms. Arroyo and Ms. Bass's names were mentioned. This was a very diverse crowd: liberal, conservative, in the middle, residents, business owners, social workers.

Chief Mills mentioned an increase in burglary. He mentioned that only 39% of crime is reported and the police understand that is not reflective of the number of actual crimes committed. He used the example of car break-ins or small thefts people feel they do not want to bother the police with and encouraged them to call. "While we only capture so much data, we realize many crimes go unreported."

"I am very proud of Eureka Main Street's Neighborhood Watch. They are not vigilante but positive. They walk up to people and ask, 'How can I help you?'"

He asked the community to get involved. Chief Mills said that due to budgets, staffing was just recently "up to snuff" and that it takes 4 to 5 months to train an officer for basic calls and "longer to train them to be good officers." There are future plans to expand the POP (Problem Oriented Policing) team and have a"a couple of officers who are proactive throughout the city."

"If you can destroy anonymity, that destroys crime," said Chief Mills. He said he does not advocate confrontation but just watching. "Just putting up neighborhood signs doesn't help. Crooks don't read that well."

"We are trying as a police department to address the right things: social chaos and social disorder."
He addressed the Eureka shopping cart and soon to be passed bicycle ordinances. He said in addition to people stealing carts, they are holding businesses accountable that allow the carts to be easily stolen. Regarding the bicycle ordinance, he said they are not going after kids or the average person riding a bicycle. They are going after people riding the bicycles on the wrong side of the street or what he said Henderson Center Neighborhood Watch has named G-Mobs. Grown Men on Bikes. The crowd laughed.

Captain Watson spoke about tresspass laws and that "California laws are confusing and poorly written" and many are not enforceable and not enforceable by law enforcement.

Elan Firpo talked about private property rights and liabilities that one can be at risk at in defending their property rights. Ms. Firpo is a former prosecutor with the Humboldt County District Attorney's office and currently a partner in the law firm of Zwerdling, Bragg, Mainzer and Firpo.

"I'm here because I live a couple of blocks away from Wabash," she said. "I'm going to talk about what you can do and what you cannot do." Using examples she explained to people about many misconceptions that people have about being protected if they use force in defending personal property.

In CA, you cannot just claim the Stand Your Ground argument. Using penal codes given in jury instructions, she cited Penal Code 198.5 and another jury instruction. She ended with the advice, "Criminals are lazy, they look for an easy target. Be vigilant!"

She also said that there is a small group of offenders committing majority of the crimes and EPD knows them. She advised people on what evidence is needed in a court of law, the risk they are taking in defending and to be careful and let law enforcement recover personal property.

Pamlyn Millsap said she is a big proponent of drug and alcohol rehab and that EPD refers people to services, shedding light on how the EPD deals with issues of people who need help, not jail.

The last speaker was Eureka City Attorney Cyndi-Day Wilson. She explained to the group what the role of the City Attorney was and that she has the authority to prosecute violations of the Eureka Municipal Code. She also has the discretion to prosecute something as an infraction. She spoke on how people who were dealing with private nuisances like a barking dog keeping them up all night or a public nuisance where a neighborhood is affected by a house with drug dealing going on has recourse to small claims court and nuisance abatement. She also explained that the Eureka City Council passed a social host ordinance where a parent or property owner (whether they are present or not) can be held liable if underage drinking is going on in a private gathering. Ms. Wilson also complimented District Attorney Maggie Fleming and 'how they are coordinating prosecution efforts to save time and resources.