Crime around TMC and Circle K area

[RichCapeCod]

Originally Posted by grmi66

According to my brother who is a Pima County Sheriff's Deputy, take the Tucson city crime map with a grain of salt. Tucson hired a new police chief who aims to bring down the crime stats to make himself look good. So things like breaking and entering are being entered in as criminal trespassing unless the culprit is caught redhanded with an armful of stolen goods. Broken side glass on a car is no longer burglary, but vandalism. The rank and file cops out on the street hate the new system.

From my perspective as a former chief of police (town on Cape Cod) and former lieutenant in the NYPD:

Dumbing down crime stats is a chronic problem in police depts. Less competent police managers use this technique in order to bolster their own position, and to show how effective they are as police managers. The exact opposite is true.

What such a policy creates is a situation where even the leadership of the dept has no clue as to their actual policing problems.

When a new, truly professional chief comes in, and ends the practice of lying about the actual criminal activities of the area the chief is responsible for, there is a sudden "crime wave!"

Not really. Just an accurate reporting of what's happening on the streets of that community.

The only reliable stat that a dept which dumb-down crime reports can offer is for homicides. It is virtually impossible to "hide" a dead body, or cover up a homicidal death. For the remainder, well, you're on your own.

Rich

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by RichCapeCod

From my perspective as a former chief of police (town on Cape Cod) and former lieutenant in the NYPD:

Dumbing down crime stats is a chronic problem in police depts. Less competent police managers use this technique in order to bolster their own position, and to show how effective they are as police managers. The exact opposite is true.


Rich

There is also the issue that when the locals no longer believe that the local police department is competent or will address their issues, they are less likely to even call the police department when they have issues.

When I lived in the City of St. Louis, MO, we did not bother calling the PD if there was a new crack-house in the neighborhood. Instead, we would contact several of the local pastors who had their own methods of closing down the drug houses..

[recycled]

Originally Posted by xz2y

Great advice and good points about the differences in city layouts. I certainly plan on spending a month in an Extended Stay place to check things out first hand. I would never take a chance and rent something without seeing it myself. The online stuff only gives you an idea.

I was picking up off of an older thread re: those two areas mentioned above. It is different than the midwest or east coast, where cities usually have bad sections and good sections, and within those areas it doesn't change much block to block.

Any recommendations for an Extended Stay place that would be safe, but not exorbitantly priced?

When I first arrived in Tucson to look for a place to live a few years ago, I stayed at La Quinta Inn on Broadway & Wilmot. Get a room towards the back and it will be quiet with no street noise. They will negotiate a good weekly rate, comparable to many extended stay places. They recently renovated all the rooms inside. Plenty of places to eat nearby & Park Place mall is a short walk.

You are smart not to rent sight unseen, without knowing the city. Many apartments and rentals in Tucson are on noisy traffic streets. I like the east part of Tucson, it is a little more removed from the busy traffic in the mid-city area. I previously lived in an older apartment south of Speedway between Swan & Columbus. It was on a quiet side street, in a safe and clean neighborhood. However, I rarely ventured to the north side of Speedway between Swan & Columbus, because the neighborhood went downhill fast. There were a ton of very cheap, old rental apartments and a couple of really run down trailer parks. That attracted some bad elements and crime was more of an issue.

When I get back to Tucson, I'm going to rent east of Wilmot. I like the area near the Fry's store at Speedway & Pantano, and will look for a quiet place near there (not necessarily on the main street).

I have been in Germany since May to avoid the hot season in Tucson, but am heading back on Oct 1.