Is Norwalk a safe or not a safe city? That is the question that some here are asking, which has lead to some rather interesting events these past days. If you are a tow truck driver about to tow a taxi cab, Norwalk might not seem so safe. If you are having dinner at Strada 18 in Norwalk Norwalk might seem very safe. Safety, like art, is one one of those things that rests in the eyes of the beholder. Each person is all so confident that they know it when they see it. Or was that Brandeis on pornography? I digress.
The reality is that crime is fairly predictable. The FBI has been reporting on crime statistics for years, and with a fairly predictable correlation between the economy and the rate of crime per capita. The more we see economic pressures on the average economic family unit, the higher the incidence of crimal activity, whether its the kind that we see, burglaries and robberies in the police blotter, or the kind we don’t see embezzlement at the office. Which is why focusing on types of crime without looking at the hard data seems an odd choice for some vocal residents.
Looking at the random comments we have you’d think there was a huge spike in youth crimes, that is, criminal acts committed by teens. Yet studying the police blotter you’d see the ages of arrests more in the adult range of 30-40-50s. Suspects? Adults too. So where is the the data supporting the idea that teens are the root of criminal activity? You can’t manage what you don’t know, just like you shouldn’t look for your lost keys under the streetlight when you dropped them in darkened alley.
There are no perfect solutions when it comes to managing a city as complex as Norwalk. But there is one fundamental constraint that seems to affect every municipal issue. The cost of increasing city services is born by city tax payers. The debate that roils around budget time is the most important aspect governing what city leaders do about crime and police staffing in addition to all the other infrastructure issues. Each election should be about the future of Norwalk and not just the future of whomever is running for office. But you rarely see that in the election propaganda. At least until you start demanding those answers.
