Pubdate: Fri, 21 Dec 2001 Source: Daily Iowan, The (IA Edu) Copyright: 2001 The Daily Iowan Contact: http://www.dailyiowan.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/937 Author: Tony Robinson I.C.P.D. EYES CRACKDOWNS When police stopped virtually every suspicious car that entered his neighborhood in response to a 1998 drive-by shooting, Jerry Hansen remembers gang activities quickly disappearing. "It was amazing," said Hansen, who lives in a neighborhood that police say attracts gang members. "It helped immediately. The drugs, the shootings -- it all went away." Local residents and law-enforcement agencies say it will take similar crackdowns and other tactics -- such as informing citizens and community policing -- to rid the Iowa City streets of gang activity. They acknowledge it may be a long, difficult fight. Iowa City police have implemented community policing over the past five years, in which officers are assigned neighborhood "beats" for a minimum period of a year. The city has been divided into four areas of focus, in which officers patrol and establish connections with residents of the area. "The philosophy of community policing is for officers to do more than just respond to calls. They develop relationships with citizens," said Sgt. Mike Brotherton. "This will make them more likely to provide tips to police and report criminal activity." Other responsibilities of officers include attending neighborhood functions and socializing with residents by walking through areas on off-duty hours, he said. Police departments in Des Moines, Council Bluffs, Waterloo, and Davenport have also implemented programs to develop more interaction with citizens. "It seems like every department in Iowa has one," Brotherton said. Some local citizens have also joined the battle against organized criminal activity. Hansen says he has been fighting gang presence in his East Side neighborhood for three years now, and he will continue to "as long as it takes." "Gang members over here are engaging in arson, drive-bys, and even threatening tenants who may inform the police," Hansen said. "We have to band together and stop them from eroding the whole base of the East Side. We need to hire more cops. Police just don't have the manpower." Hansen says police reduced their presence in the neighborhood after residents in other areas complained about police giving the neighborhood unequal attention. Police say the Southeast Side of town is a haven for gang activity. The Wetherby, Broadway, and Cross Park area particularly attracts gang members because it contains a high percentage of low-income, subsidized housing. Area residents have found syringes in their back yards, and drug deals take place in parked cars along the road, Hansen said. The community must get a handle on the situation because it has already started to spread to other areas of town, Hansen said. "Because of gangs operating in 'stealth mode,' my hardest problem in Iowa City is to convince other neighborhoods that they do exist here," he said.