COUNTY: Get handle on crime

Residents of Kootenai County, please raise your hand if you have been burglarized or had your vehicle broken into or know someone who has within the last six months. That statistic would amaze you.

There have been in the neighborhood of 50 residential burglaries where the primary method of entry has been to kick in a front, side or rear door. These crimes, for the most part, take place during the day and are committed by hypes, that is to say heroin or meth addicts. They are mostly searching and stealing money, guns, medications and jewelry. When a crime report is taken and if there were no witnesses who might have gotten a license plate number of said lowlife, the report will find its way to a detective who, having no other information, will file the report in the nice to know column.

Folks, these types of crimes can be solved but it takes a will from the top and in Kootenai County Sheriff’s area there simply is no will to address property crimes. I can offer a solution that will and has worked in the past in other parts of the country. It begins with personnel selection. In this case the Sheriff has to reach out and find a smart, hard charging sergeant who in turn recruits smart, hard charging officers who have an understanding of street criminals and have been around for several years.

This unit should be responsible to a captain or above and not subject to the whims of detectives or watch commanders. However, the unit should coordinate with both. This unit would work in street clothes and drive undercover type vehicles. With a little effort these vehicles could be borrowed from cooperative car dealers and rotated when needed.

I can tell you that when this team begins to make its presence felt within the county and when they start making life hell for these addicts and burglars, the public will see a drop in residential burglaries and other crimes. However it can’t be stressed enough that PERSONNEL SELECTION is the key and without it the project would be in doubt.

In conclusion, and this is directed to citizens out there, don’t buy into what you may be told that WE DON’T HAVE THE MANPOWER. It’s BULL. The manpower can be found!

MICHAEL J. MURPHY

Hayden