Residents, police officers and community volunteers all strive for Coconut Grove to be a safe and thriving neighborhood; however, crime in the Grove is as various and divided as the neighborhood itself.
“The biggest concern in all City of Miami NET areas is minimizing person crimes, such as battery and assault,” said Coconut Grove NET Area Commander Jorge Colina.
Overall crime percentages have decreased in the Grove. Assault and battery crimes had a 21 percent decrease with 37 taking place in 2009 and only 29 so far this year. Burglaries have also decreased 32 percent with 135 burglaries last year compared to 91 as of June 21.
In terms of crime, Coconut Grove also compares favorably to neighboring South Miami. According to the South Miami Police Department 2009 Annual Report, the city had four homicides and two rapes. For the same year, Coconut Grove had one homicide and two rapes. In the robberies category, South Miami experienced 42 robberies compared to 38 in Coconut Grove.
Despite these low percentages, in the fall of 2009, the community became the location of two rape attacks.
Coconut Grove Rape Attacks
The investigation into the Coconut Grove rapist is on-going, said Colina. There has not been another attack which fits the profile anywhere else in the city.
The rapist is described as a black male in his late twenties, approximately 5’7” and 160 pounds. One victim also said that he had a brown mark in the white portion of his right eye. Both rapes took place around Oak Avenue and Virginia Street. The reward for information leading to his arrest is $10,000.
Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers created a reenactment of the rapes for the Crime Stoppers Television website, miamicst.com, to inform the community and hopefully lead to an arrest. The video depicts the details of each robbery and assault and urges anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS.
Police Security Measures and Crimewatch
In an effort to minimize areas where criminals, such as a rapist, could hide, Coconut Grove officers on night duty report any streetlights that are not working to Florida Power and Light. Officers have also participated in beautification projects where overgrown shrubbery, which could act as a hiding place, is cut down. Graffiti is another problem the Coconut Grove NET Area police have tackled by instituting a zero tolerance policy.
“If we look like we are sharp and on top of things then we are less likely to be targeted,” Colina said.
Assisting the Coconut Grove NET Area police in their efforts to combat crime is the grassroots citizen organization All-Grove Crimewatch. Members of crimewatch strive to make their community safer by identifying crimes that take place and learning from them. The organization also focuses on educating residents and bringing members of the community together through monthly meetings, email updates and emphasizing the importance of reporting suspicious activity.
“The whole key to keeping our community safe is if you see something, say something,” said Robert Loupo, chair of the All-Grove Crimewatch.
Members of All-Grove Crimewatch also act as a Court Watch Committee. The members speak before a judge when a repeat offender, who has proven detrimental to the community, is about to be released.
Another layer of protection in the Grove is the Citizens on Patrol (C.O.P) program, which is affiliated with Crimewatch. C.O.P consists of five volunteers who patrol the community on foot or on bikes looking for suspicious activity and handing out All-Grove Crimewatch business cards. Each volunteer makes a four hour a month commitment and patrols either wearing a Miami Police Department volunteer t-shirt or plain clothes.
“We are the eyes and ears for anything that is crime preventative,” said Andres Lemos, chair of the C.O.P.
Many crimes in the Grove, such as car break-ins, are opportunistic, Lemos said. He advises that residents and visitors keep their cars minimal in order to avoid a possible crime. Such preventative measures by the community in conjunction with efforts by members of crimewatch have been a key component in minimizing crime in the Grove.
“What has happened since we have been doing all this work is that the crime rate has gone down,” Loupo said.
Nonetheless, some residents believe that, although crime has decreased, police harassment is a problem in the Village West community.
“We need some help against the police because there is no crime happening in the Grove,” said resident Trecie Kimbrough, who has lived in the Grove for 40 years. “It is a very nice and safe place to live.”
Former Coconut Grove resident Chantora Spence has seen positive changes in the Grove but believes problems still exist.
“[The police] are trying to clean up the Grove and they have taken a lot of the drug dealers off the streets but at the same time you can’t even go to the store [because] the police bother people for no reason,” Spence said.
The Importance of Community
Resident Linda Williams, 57, has lived in the Grove her entire life and believes that one way to combat crime is for residents to know their neighbors and for the police to know the people they are protecting.
“Once we get to know each other we have a greater respect,” Williams said. “Getting to know each other is going to be a key factor in getting to know crime and to combat crime.”
Colina noticed when he became commander of Coconut Grove that the community was divided.
“I realized we had a West Grove, a South Grove, a North Grove and a Center Grove and I would like us to be one Grove,” Colina said
Recently, Williams’ son was forced into the family home at gunpoint while his parents remained asleep. An investigation soon led to an arrest. Throughout the investigation, Williams said her son felt that the detective listened to him and spoke to him with dignity and respect. The experience changed her son’s perception of police officers and allowed the detective to know the Williams family on a personal level.
“It is a hard job [the police] do,” she said. “Maybe there is a bad apple in all of the barrels but I can’t say that they are all bad.”
The incident also changed Williams’ perspective of crime in Coconut Grove.
“I am aware now that crime is still prevalent whether we see it or hear about it,” she said.
A Breakdown of Crime in Coconut Grove
Crime in Coconut Grove depends on the area. The Center Grove primarily has problems with retail theft, the West Grove experiences robberies, the North Grove deals with burglaries and car break-ins are an issue near area parks. Drug sales also remain a problem.
West Grove resident Andrea Honoré, whose main concern is drug sales, said, “when you have people or strangers who start to invade in the area then the family and knowing your neighbors is eliminated.”
Drug sales have gone down but unfortunately there is already an established marketplace in Coconut Grove, said Colina. The three predominant drugs sold are marijuana, crack and powder cocaine.
“Crime is going to evolve because people are desperate to either pay for their addiction or to sell for money,” Loupo said. “It is a vicious cycle.”
Despite the drop in crime, Colina has continued to put security measures in place since he became the Coconut Grove NET Area Commander in December.
One such measure has been the expansion of home watch orders, where a police officer will patrol a home periodically throughout the day.
“[The expanded home watch order] is not the standard but we strive here in the Grove to go above and beyond,” Colina said.
In the City of Miami, a home watch order is a standard procedure granted to a homeowner if their property has been previously victimized. In Coconut Grove, residents can request a home watch order whether they have experienced a crime or not. For example, home watch orders can be requested if a homeowner will be out of town for more than three days or if their home is being fumigated.
“Throughout the city we do not have the manpower to [expand home watch orders],” said Leo Carrillo, Coconut Grove neighborhood resource officer. “It is something unique to the Grove.”
This expanded version of home watch orders also exists in neighboring Pinecrest but can only be requested in Miami Beach if the home has been previously victimized.
An increase in patrol units have helped to add more security to the Grove. The areas where mounted units, or police officers on horses, patrol have been expanded. Officers on bikes have also been helpful because they are harder for criminals to spot than an officer in a police car, Colina said.
Homeowners have also banded together to create neighborhood crimewatches or associations to handle specific concerns in their area.
Despite the different security concerns and complexities of the Grove, residents and police officers have similar desires that unite the community.
“So many people are looking for the same thing,” Loupo said, “a safe neighborhood, a safe home and a place away from fear.”
Loading ...
Send us news & feedback
You should follow us on Twitter
Grand Avenue News
Subscribe to our RSS feed
