Pubdate: Sun, 1 Nov 1998 Source: San Francisco Examiner (CA) Copyright: 1998 San Francisco Examiner Contact: http://www.examiner.com/ Author: Jim Herron Zamora LOCATION PLAYS ROLE IN KILLINGS Oakland Study Links Homicides And Social Problems Oakland is a city with many poor people, drug dealers and a high murder rate. Oakland has a large middle class, strong community groups and is relatively safe, with few killings. Both statements are true, according to an exhaustive study of homicides in Oakland. The study found that almost all the city's killings in 1997 took place in four predominantly low-income neighborhoods in the flatlands. Police believe many of these killings are linked to drugs. Meanwhile, middle-class neighborhoods such as Rockridge, Oakview and Montclair were scarcely touched by killers that year. Police and public officials said the study by an Oakland sociologist notes that there is a strong correlation between the murder rate and social problems, and that the key to reducing crime is community involvement. "It shows where we need to do more work," said Mayor-elect Jerry Brown of the homicide study. "Our top priority is to reduce the crime rate in Oakland. We need to go to the high-crime areas and help mobilize the community." The 300-page report studies how, and why, about only half of the 96 cases were solved. It breaks down everything from the time of day each person was killed to the weapon used and possible motives. The study includes dozens of charts that categorize numerous kinds of killings as well as information about victims and suspects. The report was prepared for the Oakland Police Department free of charge by sociologist Gini Graham Scott. A resident of Upper Rockridge, Scott said she was curious about Oakland murders after years of hearing stories. "I just wanted the facts and once I got them I decided to analyze this information every way possible," Scott said. "Here is solid evidence that supports -- or refutes -- anecdotal bits of information that people have had. "People have had a bad image of Oakland for a long time," Scott added. "But the facts show many neighborhoods are not so dangerous. There are problems that need attention. It's not like random killers are going out and shooting people. It's people resolving conflicts within a community using violence. The homicides are really focused in certain areas." Police need public aid One of Scott's major conclusions is that police need help from the public. In most solved cases, investigators found witnesses who either saw the crime or helped them identify potential suspects. City Manager Robert Bobb said the report could help Oakland -- which historically has had one of the highest homicide rates in California - -- develop a strategy to reduce crime. "Crime is already down here but this is the kind of information we need to effectively develop strategies," Bobb said. The Police Department, which opened casebooks to Scott, found her work did not produce any surprises "but it made us look at things and the way we do them," said homicide Lt. Paul Berlin. While DNA typing and fingerprint analysis are important, cops usually break cases because witnesses tip off investigators. "If you don't have a witness, you're not going to get a case solved," Berlin said. "We often need information to help focus our investigation. It comes down to good old-fashioned police work. We work hard to find witnesses, establish leads and develop informants." Here are some of Scott's major findings: * More than half of all killings (54 percent) are drug-related. Less than half of the drug-related cases, which include most drive-by shootings, were solved by police. * The vast majority of people died of gunshot wounds (77 percent), commonly from handguns (83 percent). * Shootings are much harder to solve than stabbings and beatings. * The majority of victims were African American (71 percent) as were the majority of known suspects (77 percent). * The most dangerous time of night is between 8 p.m. and midnight when one-third of the killings occurred. * Two-thirds of the homicides were reported to police within five minutes and 80 percent within 10 minutes. * Two-thirds of the killings occurred on the street. * Homicide detectives, who usually work in two-person teams, handle an estimated 10 to 12 cases a year. * The deadliest day of the week is Saturday while the safest day is Friday. Scott said she was surprised that only 15 percent of the homicides in Oakland last year received any coverage, mostly in the Oakland Tribune. "It tended to be the most sensational crimes or killings in neighborhoods where such things are rare," Scott said. In an interview, Scott cited a 1998 murder three blocks from her home. On May 5, Oakland pediatrician Dr. Kerry Spooner-Dean was stabbed to death in her Florence Avenue home. The case was front-page news and covered extensively by television. Nine days later, police arrested a 50-year-old ex-convict who entered the home on a carpet cleaning job. Jerrol Woods pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to life in prison without parole in August. "That was a case that everyone seemed to be talking about," Scott said. "But it is really the exception." Drug-related killings Scott's report dwells at length on the problems faced by police in solving drug-related killings, which are the most difficult to solve because the killer often has little connection to the victim. "If you have a drive-by shooting at 2 a.m., you don't have a lot of physical evidence," said Berlin, of the Oakland police. "There aren't many witnesses sitting on their front porch or looking out the window then. Most of the people don't want to talk to us." Paul Cobb, a longtime West Oakland community activist, agreed that police need community support. "It's the people who can provide clues," said Cobb, who hosts a public affairs program on Oakland's public access cable channel. "We need to help police catch people who victimize the community." But people don't learn to trust police overnight, said Cobb, whose car and home have been vandalized or burglarized 10 times in the past decade. "People need to feel that they can speak to police without their neighbors finding out," Cobb said. "Lots of people are afraid of retribution. They are afraid that their name will get back to the perpetrator. I can't blame them, if Bill Clinton can't even keep his grand jury testimony from becoming public, then no one in West Oakland can keep their name from getting out on the street as a witness." - --- Checked-by: Patrick Henry