Pubdate: Sat, 08 Sep 2007
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI)
Copyright: 2007 Journal Sentinel Inc.
Contact: http://www.jsonline.com/news/editorials/submit.asp
Website: http://www.jsonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/265
Author: Eugene Kane

TURNS OUT PEOPLE DO SNITCH ON CROOKS

Maybe the "stop snitching" movement isn't as pervasive as some first believed.

That's the impression you get after hearing the Milwaukee Police 
Department admit its impressive clearance rate for homicides lately 
can be attributed in part to the willingness of the public to 
cooperate with police to help solve crimes.

Everybody recognizes that most homicides in town are black-on-black 
crime. But some also believe the frustrating inability to get things 
under control is linked to the refusal of African-American residents 
living in violent neighborhoods to help cops put the bad guys behind bars.

That's always been an insulting assumption that lumps law-abiding 
black citizens with jobs and families in the same category as gang 
members and drug dealers looking to avoid prosecution. It suggests 
that whenever someone is killed in the central city, nobody in the 
area wants the bad guys to pay, which is a sad commentary on any 
group of people.

Many cops will admit it can be problematic to find witnesses to solve 
every crime in the central city, but it's far from a rule of thumb 
that no one is willing to cooperate. If nobody in the central city 
ever cooperated with cops, the Police Department's 79% clearance rate 
for homicides wouldn't be anywhere near that high.

Fourteen of this year's 67 homicides remained unsolved as of last 
week. Capt. David Zibolski, head of the homicide division, referred 
to the 53 solved cases as "an outstanding number" in a Journal 
Sentinel interview last week. He also said more residents have been 
coming forward with information to get wrongdoers off the streets.

That would surprise some people, including readers who regularly ask, 
"Why don't black people ever cooperate with police?" These same 
people often cite the "stop snitching" movement as proof, but their 
knowledge comes not from any practical experience but from media 
accounts or talk show hosts.

I don't believe the "stop snitching" controversy was ever indicative 
of much more than attempts at intimidation by criminally minded folks 
in some segments of the African-American community, just as the only 
people who followed the code of omerta in the Italian-American 
community were mixed up with the Mafia.

Media attention on the "stop-snitching" movement began in the early 
2000s when black gangs dealing drugs in Baltimore and other cities 
started using the phrase in a series of bootleg video and rap albums 
aimed at frightening residents from providing information to law enforcement.

In its inception, "stop snitching" was mainly a code between 
criminals. If you were dealing drugs and were "pinched' by cops, you 
were encouraged not to turn against other drug dealers in a deal for 
less prison time. Otherwise, you were labeled a snitch.

It's the same as being a "rat" when James Cagney was making gangster 
movies. It was never meant to apply to "civilians." But many 
journalists looking to research the issue fell prey to questionable 
sources of information.

"60 Minutes" did an interview early this year featuring a hip-hop 
rapper named Cam'ron who claimed to represent the "stop snitching" 
ethos. Amazingly, Cam'ron told a gullible Anderson Cooper that he 
wouldn't even report serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer to the cops if he 
lived next door.

That's a ridiculous statement on its face, but some people believe 
that kind of thing. Cam'ron later retracted some of his comments.

On occasion, cops have used the "stop snitching" movement to chide 
central city residents who didn't respond to pleas for more 
information. That seems slightly hypocritical in a city where Frank 
Jude Jr. was beaten senseless in front of a group of off-duty cops 
who refused to drop a dime on fellow officers until faced with federal charges.

Criticizing black residents for being reluctant to rat out their 
neighbors while the Jude case was still unresolved always seemed a 
bit incongruous to me.

That's why it was somewhat surprising to hear Zibolski credit the 
public for helping solve eight of this year's homicides within a few 
days. A cynic might say he was just trying to persuade city officials 
to retain a Neighborhood Safety Initiative up for renewal, but 
sometimes you take what you can get.

Through the height of the "stop snitching" hype, former and present 
police officers told me most central city residents continued to be 
willing to help bring criminals to justice, particularly when their 
family members or friends were involved as victims. But central city 
residents are also practical people.

I always remember a call from a reader years ago who said she wanted 
to report drug dealing on her block but worried that each time she 
called the precinct, they wanted to send a patrol car to her home.

"If they come and park right outside my door, everybody can see who's 
talking to the cops," she said.

Anonymous hotlines help citizens report crime without fear, but brave 
residents unafraid of simply telling the police what they know about 
wrongdoing still remain an important part of the solution. Clearly, 
trust needs to be re-established on both sides so everybody can work 
with each other.

There are plenty of well-meaning "snitches" out there; they just want 
to make sure snitching isn't hazardous to their health. That's not so 
much to ask.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman