Neighbors React To Roycroft Homicide
By: Vanessa Herring
Updated: January 15, 2013
Nacole Smith has several young children. She lives just around the corner
from Roycroft Drive, where a 24-year-old man was fatally shot in broad
daylight Monday afternoon. Nacole is afraid for her kids to spend time out in the neighborhood.
"Going to the store, going out to play, because you never know," said Smith.
Nacole is hoping the Rochester Police Department's latest efforts to stop the violence will work.
"More people need to just put in their consideration and come in and see these meetings to help other people really understand what's going on out here in the streets, as far as our kids being safe," explained Smith.
The department is hosting several "Voice Of The Citizen" meetings and Twitter town halls. The goal is to engage the community to prevent and solve crimes.
"Often times people think when they're helping the police that they're actually helping the police, and that is our job to solve crime but you're really helping the community," explained city police sergeant Justin Collins.
Police say they're doing the best they can, but the community plays an important role in ending the violence.
"I mean when you have an incident such as Roycroft today [Monday] we need people to come forward and tell us what happened," explained Collins. "It's broad daylight, there's a homicide, there's a lot of people outside, a lot of people passing through, we need those people to come forward and let us know. Ultimately if you don't do that you're basically condoning violence."
Officers hope all their efforts to engage the community will help lead to an arrest in the first homicide of 2013. The next "Voice of the Citizen" meeting will be held Tuesday, January 15th in the neighborhood where the man was shot. The meeting will start at 6 p.m. at the Carter Street Community Center.
"Going to the store, going out to play, because you never know," said Smith.
Nacole is hoping the Rochester Police Department's latest efforts to stop the violence will work.
"More people need to just put in their consideration and come in and see these meetings to help other people really understand what's going on out here in the streets, as far as our kids being safe," explained Smith.
The department is hosting several "Voice Of The Citizen" meetings and Twitter town halls. The goal is to engage the community to prevent and solve crimes.
"Often times people think when they're helping the police that they're actually helping the police, and that is our job to solve crime but you're really helping the community," explained city police sergeant Justin Collins.
Police say they're doing the best they can, but the community plays an important role in ending the violence.
"I mean when you have an incident such as Roycroft today [Monday] we need people to come forward and tell us what happened," explained Collins. "It's broad daylight, there's a homicide, there's a lot of people outside, a lot of people passing through, we need those people to come forward and let us know. Ultimately if you don't do that you're basically condoning violence."
Officers hope all their efforts to engage the community will help lead to an arrest in the first homicide of 2013. The next "Voice of the Citizen" meeting will be held Tuesday, January 15th in the neighborhood where the man was shot. The meeting will start at 6 p.m. at the Carter Street Community Center.
