If We Really want to end Crime in the USVI

I knew there was a reason I took a break from this site.

My God Lizard. I would hate to have that woman Judge me. I would be in contempt of the court so darn fast I wouldn't be able to blink. Good God and I'M not even a Punk Thug. This idea might just work. We can nick name her lazer tongue.

In dealing with terrorists, our tax dollars should pay for weapons to stop them, not lawyers to defend them. ....Scott Brown

GUNS ARE GREAT. People are bad.

I LOVE Judge Judy. If I could increase the font size, to emphasize, I would! I tell my husband all the time, I want to BE Judge Judy. She rocks.

She is very snipy and I'll bet she bites. She plays a tuff one though.

Don't forget, she's an actor, but also a judge. I know better than to think it's all for real, but I LOVE her (did I mention that?) 😀

I know she is acting and in that act she takes no crap. She may do the VI some good.8-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1WGcyJhhE4 (Watch from 1:40)

It is obvious that you Guys have never been to a New York City Court Room, That the JSC was a Jewish Female. They had to tone Judge Judy down for the show, that's a fact.8-)

You're correct. I have done my best to avoid court rooms.

The Killer beans,send in the Pintos with Cornbread body armor a side of onion and we can throw in some bacon for the Terrorist.

As I understand it, most of the crime is committed by uneducated individuals. If you are caught doing crime and convicted then part of the sentence should be you have to get an education including a college degree while in prison before the convicted offender can be released. In addition to the education the criminal would also have to produce a paper on how they intend to find a job once they are out. Once out they would need to report weekly on what they are doing to find a job.

A start would be to close our borders. How do you do that? A start would be to hire "watchers," one who sits in a tower on top of each island with powerful binoculars (including night vision) to scan the waters around the island for incoming boats. There should also be radar, of course. The watchers dispatch scouts to more closely observe any suspicious boats closer to shore. When the scouts found a boat to be suspicious, the border patrol officers would be dispatched to make a final determination.

Next the ports. We have so many people on welfare, we could get them to patrol the ports, assist with looking for contraband and be paid a reward for anything they found. Hire some ex criminals to look for criminals. Once you get out of prison, it's really hard to get a real job, and this might do a lot to improve their chances.

We need to set up real neighborhood watch where people take shifts and actively patrol neighborhoods, schools, public areas, assisting the police to find the criminals and arrest them.
We need to teach the police what they need to know to get evidence that allows for successful prosecution.
We need attorneys to learn how to successfully prosecute a case
We need judges who actually sentence criminals properly, instead of dismissing almost every case for one reason or another.

Then we need to bring more clean, green industry here that pays workers a fair wage for the cost of living here. Government needs to give incentives, and decrease the red tape we all love so much. We need to loosen the funds for education so the schools become our number one priority. We may have lost the generation we now have with our lackluster educational standards, but if we want to compete in the real world, we need to get real teachers to give our youth a fighting chance.

We need to educate with tv programs and articles in the paper to give us a vision of what our islands could be. We need to then hire senators and governors who can embody and grow this vision and steer our islands towards that vision.

Or we can get some rum, watch the sunset and pass out.

Antique one , all great proposals, right on! I totally believe that education is the key. Scott, that is positive thinking.

I have an observation that was an eye opening experience for me. I was recently soliciting signatures for a petition. I approached @ 300+ working class people to ask them to participate. The results are shocking. Of these @ 300 people just 60 were registered to vote. I became curious of the reason. Most said that they didn't want to be called for jury duty, others said that they didn't trust or care to participate, other said voting was Babylon, others said that because of corruption that their vote would make no difference, or they had legal issues.
The experience was really disturbing. It's more clear to me now why things are so slow to change. The people of the VI need a basic course in civics. They don't understand they have power and no idea how to use it if they did decide to take some interest.
It would be great if all the talk show radio hosts could ask each caller if they voted. A least some people would hear the message.
There are a lot of smart people in the VI. I hope one of them can figure this out.

I just wonder how many of us on this forum are residents and registered to vote

and actually participate in the process.

I agree that education is key. There is plenty of money available. But (stepping out on a ledge) the unions need to be shut down, the bureaucracy needs to be toppled. There is a program serving small children that has administrators, assistant administrators, administrative assistants and not a single service provider. They contract out the work piecemeal because the union salaries are too low for professional staff, but cushy for the bureaucrats.

The reason criminals are uneducated (and why requiring them to go to school is useless) is that a large number of them have language learning problems for one reason or another (from simple dyslexia to autism spectrum.) That is why early childhood education is important. Early identification AND early remediation/habilitation/cognitive stimulation...

Bombi. How long do I have to be a resident before I can register ?

After 6 months you are supposed to get a VI driveer's licence and can register to vote. On STX you go tothe elections board office next to Kmart/Kenmore in sunney isle. Birth certificate, SS card and ID, fill out a form, get your picture taken, pick up ID an vote.

If you intend on being a permanent resident then you can register to vote as soon as you get on island (after you get a drivers license). This also helps when you need to provide a second ID, and shows potential employers that your not just a transient.

I have no where else to be. Permanent it is. Thank you for the info.

Just a thot: it seems that on STX there are only two patrol cars with 2 cops each on any given shift to patrol the whole island. Each patrols a half of the island. Two problems with this: if one gets a call and needs back up, it will take at least 15 minutes for the other car to respond. Lots can happen in that time. Also if one car is on a call, it cannot respond to any other emergencies so if you are on East end and the East end car is busy, you have to wait for the other one from F'sted to come. (That also leaves F'sted unpatrolled.)

Yes, there are other specialized units, but they are busy doing their own thing.
With the crime rates we have, how in the world can we expect proper policing with that skimpy coverage? We need more cops on patrol

The issue of not enough Police on patrol is a very good one. Antiqueone, I take it you have been around for a while,you realize that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Bitch,Gripe and Moan to the local media on a routine schedule,make connections with them on and off island. Like them personally or not someone needs to get them interested in the story.

I see the story of the Feds leaving the islands only to return after they have worked out issues with the local Police departments. Who wrote the story,did anyone take any interest in the Author and follow up with them. I can not count the people on this board who have told me I will have a very hard time offering consistent great service,I may have a hard time doing it,but I think not. It is an issue, I think the whole country suffers from not just the islands. I can promise this,I will die trying to do what I say, I am going to do.

In a lack of better terms,it is a serious issue for me. I have read the articles quoted from the PD on the high crime rates. They exist,you can't deny that. As I get a little older I think of the the things that I did not condone in my youth. What about a routine permitted demonstration. I know this will be seen as a negative for the tourism industry on island and it will effect my business as well but sometimes we may just have to suffer a little bit. I know there are several issues I will support,some with money and some with nothing more than a since of involvement and offer a place for the group to meet. I'll put my butt on the front line,I hope I just don't have to stand alone.

Look at the President right now. Before he got into politics all he could claim to be was a community organizer. If he is not on top of our world right now,I don't know who is.

Keep in mind this permitted demonstration is not to slam the Police or belittle them,it is to help support them when their bitching is not enough to get the job done. Good Cops bad Cops we have them all,look for ways to assist them in the performance of their jobs. A friend can go a long way for a friend, but a person who bitches at them all the time will get little respect or assistance.

Great points on the island only have 2 cars on patrol at any give time. There is literally no way 2 Cruisers can give the support the community needs. I don't have the money to support this idea, but what if someone who did have the money to support them ? bought a couple of cars. I know there are a few people on island with millions of dollars sitting in the bank. What is there take on the situation ? It will be a hard sell and legally I don't have a clue where the issue stands but it is worth a shot. It's going to have to become a thorn in someones side,so I think routine talking to the right people is a big key.

The USVI got(another) 200 new police cars last year ( January 17th 2009).

T. THOMAS - The V.I. Police Department has received part of its new fleet of 200 police cruisers, which will be split equally between the two island districts.
What 100 for St. Thomas/St. John, & 100 for STX?
So, even if these were the ONLY cars they had, what is STX doing with the other 98?

Here in STT, you rarely see a uniformed person in these police cars, so i guess these are just people enjoying free cars & gas @ the peoples expense???
And these police vehicles with three years of service or with 80,000 miles must be replaced, whichever comes first!!

And, I thought my 2005 car was nice(it`s paid for) but by USVI police standards, it`s a old POS!!!!

OK, back to the police car issue, what of the other 98 cars?????

In STT every 4th vehicle downtown is a police SUV, every 1st & second a taxi, & every third, just a car.

I`ve always thought if we got rid of the taxis & police cars, there would be no traffic.

Na, guns aren`t great, terrorists & lawyers are(we need more of those).

Dun,I feel like I need to sue someone. I can't imagine for what but we'll think of something. Know any good Attorney's ? I guess if the Police don't feel like they need a larger presence,one is not needed. I can handle myself and still sleep at night.