Streetlife

Why is this incompetence of the law?  What should the police have done?  If they had arrested the boys/men, would you have been prepared to testify? - the experience of police is that usually people won't.  Would you have been prepared to take out a private prosecution?

What would you describe it as then?
Yes I would have testified and I have another 7 housemates who also would have done so.  We weren't asked by the police if we would or wouldn't, it was obviously assumed by them as well as yourself that we wouldn't testify.

I certainly don't feel protected by their apparent siding with the offenders but of course I realise that their job is to assume innocent until proven guilty.  Maybe I should have invited them to come back and look for the football all day today when they had daylight?  Their job is protection of the innocent isn't it?  I don't feel protected.  In fairness to them though their presence at least was something but it's frustrating to see them sent on a wild goose chase by time wasters!  It's the system that has wrapped the criminals/potential criminals in cotton wool and the police are the face of this system so it's understandable to be annoyed about that.

I also called the police 2/3 weeks ago to report broken traffic lights that had almost caused a head on collision  right infront of my eyes (at the corner of earlsfield road and garrett lane) and they never bothered to come to do anything about it, even after three people called them and half an hour had passed so myself and two guys, one being the guy had almost crashed and another two guys from a local pub had to get up a ladder with traffic passing and tape black bags over the front of the three lights as they had been hit by a passing truck and were twisted into the opposing traffic.  A police officer finally arrived only to question us as to why we were meddling with the traffic lights!

I passed the lights again about 3/4 hours later and there was still no difference to them than the black bin bag and selotape job that we had done ourselves.

Forgive my annoyance but this doesn't give me much confidence in the law either.

I found a young chap going down the side of my neighbour's property last week and when I queried him he said he was looking for a lost football. It must be the latest "line"! Following my instincts that he was up to no good, I asked him where he'd kicked it from. Said he'd kicked it from his house in the street behind. What street is that, I asked. He didn't know the name of the street...

Knowing the police wouldn't be around in time and as he slunk away back over my neighbour's fence I phoned that neighbour and knocked on the door of the neighbour of the garden in which I found him. 

About an hour later, I saw him again on my road and asked him if he was still looking for his "football". Then gave him a stern talking to, told him I was a lawyer, knew he was up to no good, that his story was sh*t and to clear the eff off. Haven't seen him since!

Moral of the story - we need to show that we care about our own streets and not rely on the police for everything.

Yes maybe that's what's missing mungomuffit, we need to get the community spirit back again so at least streetlife can help with that.  For the record, the guys that were around here were late teens, early twenties,  all wearing hoodies, which they used to cover their faces when one of my housemates went to photograph them as evidence for the police, something that only a guilty person needs to do I think?  There was a bike in the foyer of the building that they would have been able to see through the glass door so maybe this is what they were hoping to get at.

I'm glad that you stood up to them mungomuffit, they need to realise that we're not all afraid of them.

I've also experienced the invisible football.  I have no doubt in my mind at all that the young men in question were up to no good.  Unfortunately the verbal abuse scared me for days afterwards.  We reported it to our community police.  They didn't come round and see us, but hopefully they took note of it.  I am a firm believer in always reporting anyhting suspicious rather than letting it go.

I'm very sorry to hear that they scared you too Vicky, this is why I think that the police should be firmer with them.  And I really believe that if they don't nip this behaviour in the bud then it won't be long before those guys start to commit bigger  crimes.

Have any of you heard about the petition that is going around to get cctv installed in the area behind the. It Sainsbury's? It's by Malva Close and Westdean Close due to all the problems they have been having wih local youths, prostitutes and drug dealers. There used to be old ladies living in that block of 12 flats and they were always intimidated and harassed. We used to live in Westdean Close about 6 years ago before we had enough and moved to Old York Road. In his one block here was this couple that used to let all sorts of dodgy people into the block and they would bang on the old ladies' doors demanding money and food and other stuff. They used to keep us up until early hours of the morning and the police used to come around at least 3-4 times a week!! I had enough and complained to the Council who didnt really do anything until I got our local MP Vanessa Graham involved. That woman is like the real Womder Woman! When I contacted her half an hour later she phoned me to discuss and within 48 hours of us complaining the tenants we're evicted.

One of the. With ours told me she had gone down to see the old ladies and was confronted by some youths and the local drug dealer. Vanessa stood up to them and told them to clear off. I always feel bad that I never personally thanked her for being so helpful.

Anyway after my long story the point I'm trying to get to is do you think having more CCTV in the area would be a good thing? I can't think of any negative aspects to getting it and think that that this can only help people feel safer.

In case any of you do want to sign the petition here is the link:
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/westdean_close/?m=0