Testing the FWPD

I've been working outside a lot this past month and it has allowed me to get to know many of the new guys on the block. I had a few interesting experiences, such as when I kicked one guys boxed chicken dinner off the sidewalk and into the road. He had eaten the food already, but his drugs were still inside. There was a little tension in the air early on, but for the most part the current freshman class and I have gotten to know each other pretty well now. I know most of them by their names and by their habits, and all of them know me.

Once I've gotten the introduction out of the way, I am able to speak to them directly and give them a pretty clear message. It usually goes something like this. "You need to keep a clear line between your activities and my property. Do not set on my property. Do not throw trash on my property or on the sidewalk where I have to pick it up. Do not be loud. Do not intimidate anyone who comes and goes from my home. If you guys fight over something, take it to an empty lot, away from my home. You need to conduct your activities in a manner that allows me to ignore it. If you don't, I'll come out and remind you or I'll call the police."

To a certain degree, they have been surprisingly receptive to what I've said. Very few people act aggressively towards me. They don't mess with my tools when I walk away for a couple minutes. And they don't litter, trespass, or shout very much when I am within sight. However, they still often engage in the latter group of activities when I am out of sight. Usually I remind them, but occasionally I call the police.

A couple weeks ago, the corner had been active for most of the day. It started out rather quietly in the early afternoon. But as the evening progressed, the number of people and the noise outside my house was starting to bug me. At nine in the evening, I called FWPD. I identified myself, gave my address, then said this "Could you send a car through the area when you get a chance. The guys on the corner have been there all day and they're getting pretty noisy. This is not an emergency, just please send one of your cars through when you get a chance and that will probably quiet them down."

The operator's response was to ask "Is that all they're doing, being noisy?" I interrupted the operator and said "Listen, I hope you’re recording this, because I want to make this very clear. These guys are running an open-air drug market here. You know it, all the police know it, and everyone in this neighborhood knows it. When I call to tell you the guys on the corner are getting too noisy, I expect you to send a car to check on it."

This really pissed me off. I shouldn't have to police the drug dealers here myself. That's what I pay FWPD to do. And I think I have done enough by now that FWPD should realize I am legitimate and take my calls seriously.

Now, in most neighborhoods, people standing on the corner and being a little noisy might not seem like enough to get worked up about. But in most neighborhoods, those guys don't stand there all day and night. In most neighborhoods they don't drop a bunch of trash in other peoples yards. In most neighborhoods they aren't selling drugs right outside your front door and frequently creeping into your yard. I do not call FWPD every day about the problems here. I have come to the realization that they are either unwilling or unable to effectively deal with this problem. I would say that I probably police this one corner as much or more than FWPD does itself. But when I do call FWPD about this bullshit, I expect them to respond, not to give me more bullshit!

Anyway, within five minutes a patrol car came through the area. The guys left the corner as soon as he came in sight. I saw the police make one or two passes through the area as the guys kept trying to walk back to the corner. I didn't see the police stop anyone, and they left after a few minutes. It didn't take very long for a few people to return to the corner, but they remained quiet for the rest of the night.

I appreciated the fact that FWPD sent a car through to tell the guys to sell their drugs quietly. I did not appreciate that the operator's question seemed to insinuate that I was making a frivolous call. The next day, I briefly considered doing something very stupid. I came up with a plan that involved balloons, a funnel, and a few cans of brightly colored paint. I was curious to find out how FWPD would like it if someone trashed their property. I didn't go as far as making the paint balloons, but I did go to FWPD and this is what I saw.

Okay, maybe the drug dealers are everywhere. Evidently somebody has been setting in front of the police station and tossing their trash on the front lawn. I actually walked inside to the front desk and told the little old lady behind the counter that there was trash strewn across their front lawn. Her reply was that she had just come in the building and it wasn't there then. She said she was sure that someone would clean it up soon. Actually, the trash (including the big microwave popcorn bag) remained there for at least another two days.

Anyway, I then asked the little old lady for change for a dollar, so I could get a piece of bubble gum out of the machine in their front lobby. I stood in the foyer of the FWPD, chewing the stale gum and reading their public safety posters, for about five minutes. I assume they have cameras there, as well as in front of the building where I had stood for fifteen minutes before walking in. I began to wonder about this. Does it not seem odd for a man to be loitering in front of the police station for fifteen minutes, then walk up to the desk only to report that there is trash on the ground and ask for change for bubble gum, then loiter in the lobby for another five minutes? My anger towards FWPD turned to bemusement. The paint balloons was just a passing thought, and I really didn't want to get arrested, I just wanted to feel them out. Call it an intelligence test - finding out what it takes to get noticed while standing in front of the police station.

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On the following day, I went back to the FWPD and sat in front of their doorway eating my lunch. My intention was to just set there until an officer stopped and asked what I was doing, to which I would have given a nonchalant answer such as "just setting here eating my lunch." If the officer told me that I had to move along, then I was going to ask what law I was violating. It seems that the guys can stand in front of my house (dropping trash and selling drugs) all day long and the police can't (or won't) do anything about it. If there is a law forbidding me from loitering in front of the police station, then that same law should apply to others in front of my home.

My attire was not really what you would call inconspicuous that day. I sat in front of the police station for a full fifteen minutes eating my lunch. Several officers, including at least one member of the Command Staff passed by without even glancing my way. It really surprised me that not one officer seemed to question my presence here. I thought about actually setting down on the steps for a bit, but decided on another plan.

I left my trash from Arby's setting on their staircase and walked across the street. I sat down by a tree there and watched to see how long it would take before one of the passing officers picked up the trash (or at least seemed to notice it) which was right at their front door. After watching several officers pass by, I went back to my truck and got my camera again. On the last of these four photos the trash had actually blown down onto the steps themselves, and it still went unnoticed.







Maybe I am overreacting here. Maybe it's really no big deal that the dealers loiter in front of my house all day long and throw their trash on the ground. Then again, maybe I should show these pictures to the guys here and suggest they start selling their drugs at FWPD. Anyway, I had my fun for the day. And I did pick up the trash when I was done and brought it back home.

At times, FWPD seems rather indifferent to the problems I am facing here. And apparently they might not even notice it if these guys were standing in front of their own building. I was curious as to whether this type of activity occurred everywhere. Below are photos of the homes of Tom Henry (Mayor of Fort Wayne), Rusty York (Fort Wayne Chief of Police) and Marty Bender (Fort Wayne City Councilman and Deputy Police Chief). The first thing I noticed about these properties is that they do not have people loitering in front of them and they do not have trash strewn about.

I also noticed that none of these houses have public sidewalks in front of them, and began to wonder if that is the solution. Perhaps I can petition the city to remove the sidewalk from in front of my home. Then, the dealers won't have anyplace to stand. But seriously, I am certain that the lack of illegal activities in front of these homes is simply due to the fact that these are powerful people who matter. I'm quite certain that if either of these three people called to report that there were people outside of their house being noisy, a car would immediately be sent before any more questions were asked. And if my friendly neighborhood drug dealers tried to set up shop at these locations, I am quite certain that FWPD would spare no resources in shutting them down.

Unfortunately I live in the inner city, where everyone is considered to be a criminal or simply someone undeserving of any respect (just ask FWPD), so I really don't matter to them. Combine this with the fact that they don't even seem to notice the obvious when it is right in front of them, and I guess that explains why my neighborhood sometimes appears to be officially sanctioned for selling drugs.

In one of the photos above, you can see the Sunday paper lying in the front driveway. This photo was taken at seven in the evening, so Chief York was either a very late sleeper or more likely he was out of town for the weekend. I find this interesting also because I can't do that at my house. Because groups of criminals standing in front of my home is considered commonplace, I have to change my habits to accommodate this problem. If I am going on a trip somewhere I have to begin loading my vehicle early and a little bit at a time. I have walked out with several bags in hand before only to have one of the drug dealers turn to me and ask with a smile "You going away for a while?" Unattended newspapers or an overflowing mailbox is the equivalant of announcing that the house is unoccupied. I may as well put up a bright orange sign that says "Please Trespass."

Below are a couple of photos that show what these guys do with their trash when they're not simply throwing it on the ground. I am going to call the City to see if they can clean this out before it causes a problem. I wonder if they'll charge me for this. After all, as the owner of this property, I am required to keep the public sidewalk and the grass median maintained. Of course, I have no rights over these areas (I've been told that by a high ranking member of FWPD).

Below this are a couple more photos of my house which show the work that I've been doing outside lately. Hopefully this will begin to send a statement to the oblivious FWPD and to the disrespectful drug dealers that the owner of this property gives a damn and he will work hard to take care of his home.