NOLA crime…. (2 Viewers)

[Outbackjack]

Used to visit a few times a year, and COVID stopped me from visiting temporarily.

So ready to come back for some food and fun.

However, a friend that lives there says things are different. Said it’s hard to explain, just a vibe of uneasiness.

This absolutely breaks my heart. Still going in August but this was the city I always looked to for festive happy times. Special diverse people that just enjoyed and embraced life differently.

Then a quick google turns up this.

New Orleans likely leads nation in murder rate for 2022

Recent crime statistics shows a troubling trend in New Orleans.

www.wdsu.com

What’s the real scoop from the insides……is it more dangerous than before?
And if so, why?

Is it a lack of fear of being apprehended/punishment?

Is it a lack of police numbers?

Hopefully you can tell me my friend is overreacting, and the crime is mainly limited to areas I would try to stay away from, and it hasn’t reached the wonderful parts of town

Coming in August, staying on Poydras in the Riverside Hilton

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Kingston]

Easiest answer lack of police and criminals that know that. It’s not as bad as the press makes it out to be uptown and downtown are pretty safe on the most part. The French Quarter is bad I would avoid that but if your just here having a good time it’s fine.

 

[football]

Not really a place to discuss this but I do understand your concern. Honestly almost every cities are saying the same thing. Crimes are rising so rapidly across the nation. Don't want to say more because it will turn too political.

 

[neworleanshoo]

Major EE thread, but yes, like other major cities we're dealing with an uptick in crime and a major shortage in policing. There are some random acts of violence - interstate shootings etc - but overall non-violent crime is actually down recently. There are more cameras (both private and public) than ever before. I wouldn't put much stock into the "general feeling" comment. Nationwide, opinion polls for public leaders are all in the toilet. A major economic downturn and rise in crime will do that. New Orleans is really not an outlier - but that's not an all an excuse for our mayor who is basically asleep at the wheel. The police shortage isn't only getting worse, and the issue requires vision that this administration completely lacks. My .02

 

[Saint Droopy]

Used to visit a few times a year, and COVID stopped me from visiting temporarily.

So ready to come back for some food and fun.

However, a friend that lives there says things are different. Said it’s hard to explain, just a vibe of uneasiness.

This absolutely breaks my heart. Still going in August but this was the city I always looked to for festive happy times. Special diverse people that just enjoyed and embraced life differently.

Then a quick google turns up this.

New Orleans likely leads nation in murder rate for 2022

Recent crime statistics shows a troubling trend in New Orleans.

www.wdsu.com

What’s the real scoop from the insides……is it more dangerous than before?
And if so, why?

Is it a lack of fear of being apprehended/punishment?

Is it a lack of police numbers?

Hopefully you can tell me my friend is overreacting, and the crime is mainly limited to areas I would try to stay away from, and it hasn’t reached the wonderful parts of town

Coming in August, staying on Poydras in the Riverside Hilton

Thanks in advance!!

I see its back to how it was in my teenage years (late 80s-early 90s).

 

[Super44]

A police force that is hampered by the federal consent decree. Police officers who are afraid to respond to a crime scene for fear of not having backups show up if needed. A DA who continues to push felony charges to misdemeanor charges in NUMEROUS cases. A mayor who still has not come up with a plan/strategy to address the rising violent crime rate along with a police chief who is completely lost for answers. And a civil sheriff that continues to allow prisoners to walk scott free even after having been convicted. Do you see why there is so much violent crime on the rise? It does not take a genius to understand why minor crime is down.

 

[King_Kamala61]

You dont fix crime with more police, you fix crime by having programs to curb poverty and get folks working.

Lack of resources causes crime. In wealthy areas crime is waaaay down due to resources and jobs.

 

[MarCowMar]

District attorneys matter.

A lot.

Research your district attorneys in detail.

Research who funds the campaigns of your district attorneys.

Research the way other district attorneys funded by those same persons/entities perform their jobs.

Research the satisfaction rate of residents of that sort of attorney methodology, across any racial/gender/sexual/political demographic you like.

If you're visiting an area where the DA doesn't perform their job, you must have heightened awareness and adjust your behaviors accordingly. You must presume that criminals will have the upper hand in any criminal or legal interaction, and are perhaps even being encouraged to commit certain crimes.

District attorney is the most important position on every ballot right now. Research the heck out of it.

San Francisco is starting to get back on track. NOLA can too, but NOLA hasn't reached the precipice yet. It's only at the precipice that we can find the will to change.

Home - Orleans Parish District Attorney

A 21st Century Prosecutors' Office New Orleans has led the world in convictions and incarcerations for decades, without any corresponding decrease in crime. It's time for us to be as smart on crime as we've historically been tough on crime. The District Attorney's Office is simultaneously...

orleansda.com

 

[SaintRay]

I live here in the suburbs.
And I no longer head into the city.

 

[RJ in Lafayette]

This is becoming a political thread, but sadly this is the most important thread running on this forum and indirectly concerns the long-term viability of the franchise in New Orleans and the current reluctance of some to enter the city for any reason. Quick observations:

1. New Orleans has a toxic combination of inadequate resources with a high percentage of the population living near or below poverty levels, egregiously poor political leadership that at this moment has not taken seriously enough the threat that crime poses to the city, and a large criminal underclass. My guess is that about 400 or so are responsible for a high percentage of the violent crime in the city.

2. Until recently, I never hesitated to venture into the city (I now live in Mandeville). I still go, but watch where I go, how I drive, and where I buy gas.

3. There is no short-term answer to poverty. We are talking structural and cultural issues that occurred over generations, if not centuries. Summer-job and other programs may help some at-risk young people, and for that reason should be seriously considered. but they will not overall materially reduce the incidence of violent crime.

4. One of the great social scientists of the last 60 years is Edward Banfielf, who wrote the Unheavenly City. Even 40 years ago, the book was controversial. One of his arguments is that much criminal activity is committed by young people who live for the excitement of the moment and who lack the necessary cultural attitudes regarding educational achievement and deferring gratification for future success in our society.

5. Not all progressive cities are unsafe. I have a daughter living in, and last month I spent a good period of time in, Seattle. We wish we had the violent crime rate and economic vigor Seattle has. At the moment, I am sitting in downtown Houston, and for every major construction project I see in downtown Houston, there are 10 such projects in Seattle. However, Seattle does have a problem with theft because of progressive law-enforcement policies. As a result, nearly every pharmacy and grocery I visited has private security. But I felt very safe the entire time I was in Seattle.

6. I have never seen lack of security for a Saints game. However, I find the police presence inadequate for Pelicans games at night.

 

[MLU]

Used to visit a few times a year, and COVID stopped me from visiting temporarily.

So ready to come back for some food and fun.

However, a friend that lives there says things are different. Said it’s hard to explain, just a vibe of uneasiness.

This absolutely breaks my heart. Still going in August but this was the city I always looked to for festive happy times. Special diverse people that just enjoyed and embraced life differently.

Then a quick google turns up this.

New Orleans likely leads nation in murder rate for 2022

Recent crime statistics shows a troubling trend in New Orleans.

www.wdsu.com

What’s the real scoop from the insides……is it more dangerous than before?
And if so, why?

Is it a lack of fear of being apprehended/punishment?

Is it a lack of police numbers?

Hopefully you can tell me my friend is overreacting, and the crime is mainly limited to areas I would try to stay away from, and it hasn’t reached the wonderful parts of town

Coming in August, staying on Poydras in the Riverside Hilton

Thanks in advance!!

We visited in May for a week. It's been about a decade since we last visited. Any difference in the way it changed to me is almost certainly driven by me being 46 years old and not having anything in common with people on Bourbon street.

We were a group of 8 mostly 20-somethings and never felt unsafe for a minute. We stayed off Carondelet St, walked everywhere except when we left for a swamp tour and spent the day at City Park. Plenty of time spent in the quarter and frenchman at all hours of the day and night. No issues for us.

 

[dtc]

This'll probably get deleted for 'partisan political bickering, but meh: This is pretty common among Democratic states. Not just post-pandemic or even post-Trump. Democrat-run states have always been significantly higher in crimes, murder, and arrests, drug usage and deaths due to overdose (specifically within the rise of Fentanyl), corruption, financial mismanagement, etc. Philly looks like a literal warzone. L.A. is much of the same. Seattle isn't far behind.

I imagine it isn't too different in Louisiana. Though, if you're staying in a tourist-friendly area, then there's likely to be more of a police presence. States like Vegas and Louisiana know that tourism is their bread and butter, so they're going to do everything they can to keep those areas safe.

This is quite possibly the dumbest post I've seen this week.

Louisiana is the deepest Red State in a Red Sea.

 

[tjharris]

We visited in May for a week. It's been about a decade since we last visited. Any difference in the way it changed to me is almost certainly driven by me being 46 years old and not having anything in common with people on Bourbon street.

We were a group of 8 mostly 20-somethings and never felt unsafe for a minute. We stayed off Carondelet St, walked everywhere except when we left for a swamp tour and spent the day at City Park. Plenty of time spent in the quarter and frenchman at all hours of the day and night. No issues for us.

Yeah.
For tourists the city hasn't changed much.
Travel in groups, stay away from dimly lit areas, if you're older than 25 don't go to Bourbon at night.
Enjoy the jazz clubs, restaurants, etc.
Use lyft ask recommendations from your bartender/servers. The only thing that's really worse is the kids blocking traffic doing donuts in intersections

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

Well I’ll chime in before it gets moved or locked
Street level crime like OP is discussing always, ALWAYS tracks with changes in poverty density
Crime is a national issue mostly bc of what Covid did to long-standing housing and work issues (it’s rising in rural areas as much if not more than urban areas)
NO, like most urban areas, still has most of its crime localized in high crime areas and perpetuated among people who know each other - sure, stranger danger crimes do happen (and are rising) but it’s still a fraction of overall crime
While the rise in crime is real, the perception of the rise in crime is subject to the same propaganda that plague most of our current socio/ cultural/ political Issues - these are stories shared among (and sometimes created by) easily frightened and always angry people

 

[BooBirdSaint]

While the rise in crime is real, the perception of the rise in crime is subject to the same propaganda that plague most of our current socio/ cultural/ political Issues - these are stories shared among (and sometimes created by) easily frightened and always angry people

The perception of crime is high not because it's actually high but because of propaganda??? Seriously, if you want to reduce the perception of crime you do what California is doing. You just increase the thresholds for what constitutes crime and then your statics on crime go way down. Simple. Tired of losing the war on drugs, legalize them and crime statics goes down. Tired of prosecuting theft, increase the amount that it takes to make it theft and crime statics go down. Now if we could only find a way to hide all those victims of this non-existent crime. Sounds like a job for propaganda. Tell all the victims of this non-existent crime that the crime that just happened was all in their head...