Dateline: Washington, D.C.

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September 24, 2023 • 10:02 Comments Off on Shooting at the Cru Nightclub:

Shooting at the Cru Nightclub:

According to authorities, officers responded just before midnight to a report of a shooting at the Cru lounge and nightclub in the 1300 block of H Street in Northeast. There they found three men and one woman who were shot. All four were taken to hospitals by D.C. Fire and EMS. The three injured people sustained non-life-threatening injuries, D.C. police said one of the men, later identified as 31-year-old Blake Bozeman of Southeast D.C., died.

Bozeman was a former basketball player for Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, and the son of former Morgan State coach Todd Bozeman. He earned two degrees from Morgan State; a Bachelor of Science in marketing in 2014 and a Master’s Degree in 2016. Morgan State officials said Blake Bozeman was a shining example of what it means to be a student-athlete.

The Cru Nightclub has been shut down by police for now, and its liquor license is suspended, pending a hearing.

Filed under: Murder Book

June 13, 2023 • 19:31 Comments Off on DC’s Rising Murder Rate:

DC’s Rising Murder Rate:

A DC Police Union press release, issued on June 7th 2023, states that on June 6th 2023 Washington, D.C. suffered its 100th homicide. This is the earliest date in any year that the city has reached 100 homicides since 2003.

The District of Columbia has one of the highest murder rates per capita in America. This is a startlingly high rate compared to other cities throughout the country, making it even more apparent that something needs to be done to make the streets safer. But it seems as though city officials have no idea what needs to be done.

There are many potential causes for this jump in crime which include poverty, inequality, gang activity, and the availability of firearms. In addition, the failure of the DC court system to keep a dangerous felon in jail after arrest is a serious contributing factor.

To many repeat violators are being released back into the general public only to commit additional violent crimes while on bail or personal recognizance awaiting trial on a previous arrest.

Juveniles offenders don’t fear arrests for violent crimes because they rarely get charged as adults. If they do initially get charged as adults, by the time the case gets to court the charges have usually been reduced or the defendant has pled to a much lesser felony charge or a misdemeanor.

Unfortunately, due to its unique status as a federal district rather than a state, the District of Columbia has limited power when it comes to formulating its own laws or implementing specific measures that could help combat crime.

Filed under: The Watch Desk

September 27, 2020 • 19:22 Comments Off on “Executive Orders”

“Executive Orders”

Commentary by: U.S. Law Shield | newsletters@uslawshield.com

Where Did Our Freedoms Go?
With just a signature these days, you can Blink and your rights are gone. If someone drafted a dictionary for the year 2020, it would undoubtedly include brand new definitions for common words and phrases that we all thought we had a pretty good grasp on. During the COVID-19 period, we have all come to know phrases like “non-essential” and “essential” businesses. How about “social distancing” or those all too familiar “masks” of the PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) variety? We can’t forget “public gatherings,” which can be prohibited, limited in size, or restricted in new ways. Don’t even mention our Gun Rights or the 2nd Amendment. Some very specific terms have been amplified this year, or shall we say turned sideways, like the measurement of 6 feet, now the prescribed “safe distance” between us. Many of our freedoms seem to have disappeared right before our eyes. No explanation needed. No permission needed. No votes cast. How could this possibly happen without more involvement from the people of our country? Well I’ll tell ya, it’s all linked to the following two words… Executive Orders.

Filed under: Commentary

September 27, 2020 • 14:12 Comments Off on Buyer Beware!

Buyer Beware!

Commentary by: Jillian A. Cohen | ja_cohen@theconcernedcitizen.net

I was recently approached by someone on the street in DC who was vending 5 gallon tubs of Tide laundry detergent from the trunk of a car for only $25 dollars each. I didn’t have the money on me at the time so I declined the offer and continued on my way. However, after getting back to my office, I did some research online and found the following…

Filed under: Around Town

January 26, 2020 • 12:34 Comments Off on Where are the Checks & Balances?

Where are the Checks & Balances?

Three incidents on Metro in the last 60 days led to the discovery that the transit agency was using a bad number to reach D.C. emergency dispatchers.

On the evening of the Washington Nationals’ World Series victory parade, Dan Stessel of Metro advised that a manager in Metro’s Rail Operations Control Center called DC 911 to report a fire at the Chinatown station, but was placed on hold which created a delay in dispatching Fire and EMS. During this period, Metro managers were also placed on hold when a rider was trapped in an elevator and again when another passenger was ill.

Metro looked at these delays and raised its concerns with the Office of Unified Communications or OUC, which oversees D.C. 911. The OUC director Karima Holmes testified at a City Council inquiry that Metro was using a number that routed calls to a low-priority queue where they’re placed on hold if the dispatch center is busy.

This is unacceptable! In light of the discovery, the OUC has subsequently provided Metro’s operations center with the same seven-digit emergency number used by neighboring 911 centers in MD and VA. Metro has verified that it now has the correct number to reach emergency responders in DC and every other jurisdiction it serves.

Comment: This is the Nation’s Capital, and the Office of Unified Communications (OUC) is the hub of emergency services for the citizens and visitors of the District of Columbia. Is this the best we can do, where are the checks and balances? There should be someone at the OUC charged with creating and maintaining a revolving schedule of information and service updates that gets distributed on a regular basis to all neighboring emergency services agencies (Police-Fire-EMS) to also include the areas Water and Power companies.

Filed under: Commentary

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