The Real Answer to Local Property Crime

Published on: 2nd March, 2010 |

As property crime in the Port City soars out of control (up 19 percent this year alone), Wilmington Police Chief Ralph Evangelous railed to the City Council on Monday about thefts and burglaries.  The Chief said, “We are arresting and re-arresting these people over and over.  The rest of the system is failing us.”

The “rest of the system” to which the Chief refers is the county jail, the courts and the state’s prison and probation systems that turn out criminals as almost as quickly as they are arrested.

Chief Evangelous correctly pointed out that when arrested, property crime suspects typically receive low-bonds, allowing them to re-offend while awaiting trial.  Additionally many cases are “plea bargained,” meaning that numerous offenses result in only one conviction.

The result is what concerns Chief Evangelous the most:  officers may arrest the same person 30 to 40 times.  This means that these repeat-offenders, who are only a small percent of society, commit the bulk of the crime and, thereby, lower the quality of life of all of us.

To make matters worse, numerous prison closings and staff reductions in the N.C. Department of Correction are planned in the future.  The limited prison space, thanks to the General Assembly’s long-time refusal to fund prisons, means that prosecutors are forced to cut deals with criminals.  Weak sentencing laws (thanks again to the General Assembly) also tie judges’ hands, limiting their ability to incarcerate offenders.

So (besides cutting prison space!), what is the General Assembly doing to address a problem that they helped to create?  Get this — Liberals are trying to pass House Bill 1360.  What does it do?  It limits the types of felonies that can lead someone to be given a lengthy sentence as a habitual felon.  (Criminals qualify for habitual felon status after being convicted of a felony on three different occasions.)

In the case of property criminals the proposed law would mean suspects with multiple convictions for felony breaking and entering or breaking into a motor vehicle would NOT be considered habitual felons.  The result?  These criminals would receive lesser sentences.  Who’s the “crime fighter” sponsoring this bill:  Representative Phil Haire, a Democrat.  What is the justification Haire gives for his “Haire-brained” legislation?  Although he can offer no statistics, Haire claims that locking people up for nonviolent offenses isn’t stopping crime.  He misses the obvious – if they are locked up, they are not committing crimes.  Haire also falls back on other arguments from the liberal handbook:  it’s too expensive to lock-up the criminals and incarceration risks turning property offenders into more dangerous criminals.

Chief Evangelous is not buying these liberal excuses.  I don’t think you are and neither am I.  We know the answer to crime and it’s a simple one.  It’s one that I preached when I was Legal Counsel at the State Crime Commission.  We need swift and sure punishment for ALL criminals and a prison cell for everyone who deserves it – property criminals included! As your Senator, I will make no excuses and will hold any and all criminals responsible for their actions.  North Carolina and New Hanover County will be places were criminals walk in fear, not law-abiding citizens.

Don’t stop here! I purposefully made this article short and concise because I don’t want you just to accept my “spin.” Educate yourself by exploring further and by asking and answering your own questions.  See the article that started my inquiry:  “Wilmington police chief says repeat offenders committing bulk of crimes,” http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20100301/ARTICLES/3014007/1015/NEWS0101?Title=Wilmington-police-chief-says-repeat-offenders-committing-bulk-of-crimes

Want to sound off and be heard?  Contact Chief Evangelous at the Wilmington Police Department at 910-343-3600 and Representative Phil Haire at 828-586-1771. Let us know at Carolina Talk Network what you find out!  Email me at Thom@CarolinaTalkNetwork.com.

“Inmates will be set free” — Easy call for experts

Published on: 2nd November, 2009 |

With the shortage of prison space, it’s already hard enough to send criminals to jail in North Carolina.  Now convicted murders, rapists and robbers from the 1970s are demanding to be set free.  The criminals argue that they have accumulated enough credits under the old sentencing law to cut their sentences from 80 years to 40 years, making them eligible for release now or in the near future.

To her credit, Governor Perdue is attempting to stop the release of at least 27 hardcore criminals.  In a recent Winston-Salem Journal article on this issue, two law professors weighed in with their comments.  They offer little hope for the Governor’s cause.  Instead of coming up with novel legal arguments for defeating the inmates claims, the professors tell us to “just accept it.”

Here’s a quote from Carol Turowski, a law professor at Wake Forest University and a co-director of the school’s Innocence and Justice Clinic:  “There’s nothing for us to be debating.”  Turowski goes on to add, “It’s understandable people’s fears about having individuals convicted of violent crimes back in the general population.  However, individuals are released from jail with violent backgrounds all the time.”  Let’s not forget that 28,000 criminals, many of whom are violent, are released from NC prisons every year, but should we just let this issue go?

Jim Coleman, a law professor at Duke University, uses even stronger language than Turowski.  He accuses the Governor of political grandstanding, claiming that she has an obligation to respect the law, even if she doesn’t like it.  Here’s his direct quote:  “This is about the law.  It isn’t about this political crap.”

Needless to say, neither Turowski nor Coleman, being law professors and all, don’t expect to see these felons showing up in their neighborhoods.  It’s easy to pontificate from the high walls of the ivory tower of academia.  In an ideal world, wouldn’t it be great if the Governor could move two or three of the violent parolees next door to each of the professor’s homes?  Do you think that they might spend a little more time in the law library coming up with a novel legal theory to help out Perdue?

Don’t stop here! I purposefully made this article short and concise because I don’t want you just to accept my “spin.” Educate yourself by exploring further and by asking and answering your own questions.

See the article that started my inquiry:  Inmates will be set free say experts, http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2009/oct/29/experts-inmates-will-be-set-free/news/

Do you want tell these law professors what you think?  Here is their contact information:

Professor Jim Coleman, email:  jcoleman@law.duke.edu, telephone: 919-613-7057.

Professor Carol Turowski, email:  turowsc@wfu.edu, telephone:  336-758-6111.

When will it become impossible to live without breaking laws?

Published on: 19th October, 2009 |

In Atlas Shrugged Ayn Rand wrote:

“There’s no way to rule innocent men.  The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them.  One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.  Who wants a nation of law-abiding citizens?  What’s there in that for anyone?  But just pass the kind of laws that can neither be observed nor enforced nor objectively interpreted and you create a nation of law-breakers.”

The recent conviction of semi-retired and highly respected attorney, Johnny Gaskins, for technically violating a federal law by making small cash deposits of money that he had legally earned and paid taxes on should scare all “law-abiding” citizens.

Don’t stop here!  I don’t want you just to accept my “spin.” Educate yourself by exploring further and by asking and answering your own questions.

See the article that started my inquiry:  Lawyer’s Career Ends in Crime, http://www.newsobserver.com/news/crime_safety/story/146633.html

And, by all means read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, one of the best books ever written and required reading for any free thinker!