14 murders this month in STX

STX is a beautiful place but unfortunately there are allot (not few) of people who are destroying the place. I go back and forth from the mainland to STX, I am serious thinking of just moving back to the mainland full time. Considering how few people live on the island its just amazing how many problems there are here.

Crime seems to be on everyone's mind lately. It comes up frequently in conversations. What strikes me is that nearly EVERYONE has stories - either what has happened to them or to someone they know personally. I have heard sooooo many horrendous stories in the last 3 weeks or so. I'm overwhelmed by what I've heard. I have stories too.

My mom always says, "You live in paradise." I always correct her. The climate is about as close as you can get to paradise. The sea is incredible. The culture here is truly beautiful. But this place is FAR from paradise!

I've always felt relatively safe here. Now I'm not so sure...

My two cents! Kinda like the subject title (14 murders this month in STX) at the time it was 14 murders I believe it is now 17. However that's a year to date figure not a month figure. The crime figures are way to high for an island or community this size agreed, but if you didn't read this forum would you really lose your sense of well being as to how crime affects you on the island. If you are a resident you know the places to stay away from, the streets not to walk on after certain hours, the bars the clubs etc. You know enough when to lock your doors to keep you and yours safe. At times crime may spill over in your world and that is unfortunate to say the least, but it happens. It happens all over the USA. There is a lot that can be done by the current administration in power to help alleviate "some" of the crime problems that plague this community, however crime will always be a part of the fabric in our society and this is not just limited to the USVI. If you chose to live in fear because of crime and are going to leave the island, let me know where that utopia is that you are going to relocate too. You can read stories, hear stories, tell stories and make up stories and then perception becomes reality. Here is a story I recently read on this forum, That 40 % of the police Dept collect a paycheck for a no show job, that is laughable, but some might believe it. So I'M gong to stay, I hope and pray that I don't become a victim of a random crime anywhere in the world or the USVI.

If you chose to live in fear because of crime and are going to leave the island, let me know where that utopia is that you are going to relocate too.

Since we're about 10x higher then the national average, take a dart and throw.

The bad guys now come out during the day now so good luck knowing which areas to stay away from.

Betty,
Are you leavng the island? Are you a "shut in" because of crime? Have you been a victim of a crime? Do you live in Fear for your life because of crime? I'M not leaving, I'M not a shut In, Not a victim of a crime, and I don't fear for my life because of crime. When that dart lands i'm sure they will have crime.

No I'm not a shut in. I'm not going to say I live in fear but living here I have to constantly be aware of surrounds all of the time. I don't feel I can every let loose and relax. Never had to be constantly on alert anywhere else I have lived. I have not been a victim but it would easier for me to count my friends who have not been a victim then the ones that have. I have been lucky, I know its just a matter of time.

Yes where that dart lands they will have crime, but not as bad as ours.

Betty,
I for one hope that your luck never runs out. Today anywhere to be constantly aware and alert of your surroundings is the norm and the adult thing to do. However there are risk takers /gamblers on safety that have a good to better chance to become a stat.

Lizard~ That is not entirely true. In the city's it is, but there are thousands of small towns in the US where people still leave their doors unlocked, help their neighbors whenever, know the name of their banker and where the wildest crime is an occasional drunken brawl in the bar. Sadly, the islands are not cities and with our population, we should expect no more than 2 to 3 murders per year and perhaps 10 to 12 other violent crimes. I don't think we come close.

Lizard -- definitely not true everywhere. I moved here from someplace quite civilized, yet I had to get a new front door key made for my tenants because I hadn't locked my house in the nine years I lived there. I kept my car keys in the ignition of my car in the driveway so that I didn't lose them. This was on the outskirts of a 50,000-person town. Not only did I never have a problem, my shotgun-wielding country-boy neighbors would have been only too glad to address one if I had.

Antique,

And when something happens in one of these unlikely places, and it always does, there is some poor lost soul on TV saying "This sort of thing NEVER happens in our town". I agree some places are safer than others, but not from the homicidal maniac (Columbine) or the fanatic (Oklahoma City) or the terrorist (farmland in Penn).

All we can do is take the precautions we think are necessary. I tend to be a fatalist - if it's your time, it's your time.

Oh phewww, Only 14 murders this year not this month...for a minute there I thought there might be a problem.
I love St. Croix and will keep enjoying it, but 2 hours north of Manhattan we do leave keys in the car, doors unlocked, windows open and very seldom does something happen, but a difference in response if something does is important to notice, police respond quickly, crimes are solved, people go to jail and the public demands action.
D

Is anybody moving because of the crime on stx, back to small town USA crime free. Couldn't imagine why they sell locks in those crime free communities, and neighbors with shot guns that makes the difference I guess. All crimes get solved. What the heck was I thinking. I guess with those neighbors you don't really need a police force or sheriff.

lol...comeon...you know crime is way worse here then it should be. Our murder rate is 10x the national average. And even if the cops catch someone here red handed they usually wont do anything. Remember the guy who was robbed that had a video camera. They weren't going to do ANYTHING until they got forced to.

I never once had a problem with a cop coming to my house in a timely matter even just for a noise disturbance. And we've lived all over stateside. We all realize all cases aren't solved but here its so corrupt that even a open and shut case is rarely open and shut.

Are you mad because you don't believe crime is bad here or don't want to believe it? How many of your friends have been robbed and mugged here? Because most of mine have been. Do you even live here full time?

I LIVE IN AN UPSTATE NY VILLAGE 100 MILES NORTH OF NYC DOORS UNLOCKED, KEYS LEFT IN CARS, EVERONE LOOKS OUT FOR EACH OTHER TO MANY COPS THE ONLY THING THEY DO IS SPEEDING TICKETS AND DWI. WE HAVE SUMMER FESTIVALS / MUSIC EVENTS WITH 18,000 PEOPLE WITH NO VIOLENT CRIMES ( JUST DRUG ARRESTS ). I OWN IN STX AND COME AS MUCH AS I CAN BUT PLAN TO BE ON ISLAND MOST OF THE TIME VERY SOON. I HOPE THE CRIME SLOWS DOWN BUT IT WILL NOT STOP ME FROM COMING AND LOVING STX. BACK IN 1975 I WOULD HANG OUT IN SPANISH HARLEM ( NYC ) THE CRIME IN STX NOW IS NOT CLOSE TO THE CRIME IN NYC BACK IN THE 1970"S AND NOW NYC IS MUCH SAFER LETS HOPE STX GETS BETTER BUT IT IS STILL A GREAT PLACE

Betty,
Reread my original post please! "Yup"I do live on island full time! I expressed my opinion how I see it.Yes My friend Peter was shot and Killed.

Lizard

"...perception becomes reality." Agreed.

I've spoken with quite a few people recently who have told me their story - what happened to them or to one of their close friends. It seems as if nearly everyone here has a story. It's just not talked about all the time. Perhaps people are trying to protect their perceptions? I personally have been the victim of crime 3 times here the last 2 years - minor crimes compared to what others have faced - but crimes nonetheless.

People that dismiss the extrordinarily high crime rates here by saying "crime is everywhere" might also be trying to protect their perceptions by putting some blinders on? Although no place is crime-free, rural America doesn't see numbers anywhere close to the stats here. Most of the chatter there is "Did you see in the paper....?' or "Did you hear on the news....?" The stories here land much closer to home.

Some people that say "It's just druggy on druggy." That is plainly false. While the majority of the murders may be drug related, the majority of the crime is not.

The crime is only part of the story. After the crime has been reported to the police, the story often gets worse - not better.

I do not live in fear. If I perceive that the risks here are greater than the risks I am willing to accept, I will leave. I hope it doesn't come to that. I truly love this island. But I have to ask myself, am I willing to come home and find that everything that I own has been stolen? If you live here long enough, and you don't have a little island fortress, the odds of that happening are relatively high. Am I willing to come back from a swim at the beach just to find that my truck is no longer parked there? Just look at the stats.

Here's the story that has me the most rattled. A month or so ago, there were shots fired in my neighborhood on 2 different nights. I asked my neighbor about it. He was born and raised here. He said that he thought 'they' were just killing the dogs again. Incredulously I asked, "Killing the dogs?" He said, yes, that's what 'they' do. If you've been targeted for a burglary, they'll come kill the dogs. All your stuff will be missing soon thereafter.

Very good observation. I agree with you. Yes, the government is robbing from taxpayers - who worked HARD to make that income - and giving to those who do not deserve it. A few are honest and deserve help, but most are just taking advantage of the system. This leads others to believe that is the easy way to live. The whole system needs to change; not easy to fix on a local level.

If people know that when their dogs are killed - they will be targeted for a burglary, wouldn't they move their valuables somwhere soon thereafter? What would be the point of killing dogs ahead of time rather than right before the robbery? Strange.

If they shoot the dog right before they break in, they've just alerted the neighborhood and so has the dog. It takes a while to raise or train another dog. They can come in weeks or months afterwards - no shot - no barking. Where would you take your stuff? Would you just live in an empty house?

Not all dogs are guard dogs. Some are beloved pets.

Hey sunset Bill, sent you a PM.
D

God help the $#!head who kills my dog.

I'll rearrange my schedule to stay awake at night to wait for the $#!. If it comes to it, I'll sleep in a covert area outside my home. I could do it for a few weeks or months afterwards just to pay the f@#$er back!!

I decided against moving back to the USVI. Past resident of STX. Was seriously considering a position on STT and commuting from STJ.

I accepted a job on Grand Cayman. I began immigration process. My reason is the crime and the apparent complacency to accept it. I am sure we will visit sometime in the future, I would rather have my island friends come visit us in the Grand Cayman.

I really hope things change there. It is really sad.

lol so i googled crime on grand cayman and discovered that they are really strict and have a big prison, thats the way to go

Since you've looked it up, how did the crime statistics compare with the VI?

don't care, i'm under the US flag here which is why i picked this place instead of a non us flag place,. i wan't those bitching rights and safety from a gov kicking me out when they get the whim