Fresno police say they haven’t abandoned communities of color during surge of violence
As shootings and homicides surge across the city, some south and central Fresno residents say they fear police officers are pulling back efforts to combat gang violence in communities of color.
Much of the violence has erupted in the city’s less affluent neighborhoods, affecting residents who just a few months ago were calling for the city to defund its police department. Some residents are now questioning whether police have withdrawn from parts of the city where law enforcement has faced the most criticism.
West Fresno resident Barbara Fiske said the police response in recent months has been slow in crime-stricken areas.
“It seems as if detective work is nonexistent,” said Fiske, whose neighborhood had two shootings in a single night last week.
Fresno Police Chief Andy Hall may have fanned those fears recently when he told the City Council that officers might have been less proactive investigating potential gang-related issues in recent months.
However, in an interview this week with The Bee, Deputy Police Chief Mark Salazar said officers hadn’t deserted their sworn duties.
“We have had robust conversations with our community leaders on solutions that are community-based,” he said. “I am optimistic we will get there. Our community has asked us to be present in the community and stop this violence. We are working around-the-clock in pursuing that goal.”
Law enforcement officials blame the city’s recent violence on Gov. Gavin Newsom and the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. They say shuttered schools and empty jail beds have left young gang members with too much free time and little fear of law enforcement.
City leaders say communities and police must work together to quell the violence.
But for many families who gathered Friday outside City Hall, it’s already too late. Protesters said they need police to help them find justice for the victims not only of recent unsolved killings but also for the many Fresno families who’ve been grieving for years without answers.
Homicides, gun violence soar in south and central Fresno
Speaking to a crowd of protesters on Friday, Mike Morales mourned the loss of his 16-year-old daughter, Alize, who was shot to death just two weeks ago on Oct. 10. She died at the hospital shortly after someone dropped her off and left the area.
No arrests have been made, and no suspects have been identified publicly.
“We want justice for Alize,” Morales told the crowd outside City Hall. “She was a sweet angel. Somebody murdered her for no reason. Why hasn’t anything been done?”
Fresno has seen more than 560 shootings in 2020, more than double over the same 10-month period last year. More than 50 homicides have been reported since Jan. 1, far outpacing the 34 total murders reported in 2019.
The violence, which police believe is primarily gang-related, has predominantly affected south and central Fresno.
Southwest Fresno has recorded the most shootings this year, with 164 compared to 74 in 2019, while central Fresno had 126 compared to 50 in 2019. Southeast Fresno had 149 this year compared to 84 last year.
But while poorer neighborhoods have been the hardest hit, the spike in violence hasn’t been limited to communities south of Shaw Avenue. Northeast Fresno reported 44 shootings this year, compared to 33 last year, while northwest Fresno reported 64 this year, up from 29 last year.
The deadliest spike has been between August and October, totaling 254 shootings citywide within a two and a half month window.
In response, police launched a violent crime suppression task force on Oct. 6. Hall on Wednesday said task force investigations have led to the arrest of at least 111 gang members and the removal of 71 illegal guns from the streets.
Hall said there had been a 32% reduction in shootings citywide, while a total of 165 felons have been arrested, which includes 33 parolees and 40 with probation violations.
Fresno residents say they’re living in fear
April, a 37-year-old mother of two who asked her last name be withheld, was at home last weekend when she heard sirens on her street and helicopters circled overhead after a barrage of gunfire.
She has lived in central Fresno for more than a decade and said she’s never felt more unsafe.
“I worry for my two children,” she said. “I want to feel free and comfortable, but I don’t feel safe being outdoors, let alone my children, after dark anymore.”
April said she feels like she’s still waiting for police to take action. She said the police have emphasized that homicides decreased after the task force was launched but said that doesn’t do much to reassure residents their neighborhoods are safe.
“I was watching a police sergeant speak on how this week was better than last week because of less homicides,” she said. “It infuriates me to hear the positive spin on these things and so little information addressing action being taken.”
However, some Fresno police officers have also felt abandoned by community members in recent months amid a national social reckoning on race that has put law enforcement under scrutiny. Many advocates, including some in Fresno, have called on cities to defund police departments.
During an Oct. 13 budget hearing, Hall asked the city to add $10 million to his department’s budget and said he believes public scrutiny has led officers to take the “easier” route of ignoring potential vehicle stops they would have made in the past.
“I think a lot of officers see a vehicle that may be full of gang members, and they may just turn the other way because it’s easier, and they get paid the exact same,” he said.
Fresno police say task force is making a difference
Mayor-elect Jerry Dyer, who served as police chief for many years before his election, said it would be “concerning” if officers were not aggressively pursuing investigations because they don’t feel safe or supported by the community.
He said he knows what it’s like for police officers to work under pressure and heavy criticism, and his responsibility as chief was to “maximize the trust between police and the community.”
“Anytime there was a community protest against police or a heavy mistrust that police can feel, my job was to continually inspire my officers to go and do their best at their job and keep the citizens safe, regardless of what was happening around us,” Dyer said.
Salazar denied police have been pulling back and said “morale is high” among the city’s police officers.
He said the new task force would continue to combat violence in the city.
“We have made some progress but still have more work,” he said.
Salazar said gang violence is a “complex” problem that has grown worse during the pandemic.
Salazar’s comments echoed Hall and other law enforcement leaders who, earlier this week, blamed the violence on Newsom and the government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Law enforcement officials have been particularly critical of the state’s zero-bail policy for non-violent crimes implemented to reduce virus spread in jails.
At Wednesday’s news conference, Hall said he believes much of the gun violence could be attributed to suspects who would’ve otherwise been in custody without the zero-bail public health measure. He acknowledged not having data to back up the belief, saying police haven’t made arrests or identified suspects in many recent shootings.
Hall said he was confident the police operation launched Oct. 6 has made a difference.
Salazar said that many of the gang members involved in the shootings are young teens. He said school closures due to the pandemic and a lack of after-school programs are allowing many kids to get into trouble on the streets.
“We have arrested under a dozen 15- to 18-year-olds for murder, robbery, and gun possession during this operation,” he said. “Right now, with no school or community center, they’re walking the streets unsupervised.”
Councilmembers Miguel Arias and Luis Chavez, who represent two of the hardest-hit districts, plan to host a summit on Oct. 28 intended to bring together faith-based, neighborhood leaders, organizations and directly-impacted youth to identify an action plan that will address the violence.
Arias also said the the police department is in line to add, at the most, four police officers, and that can take up to a year for them to onboard. The majority of a budget increase would go into increasing compensation and general cost.
“I want the community to understand that although we are considering the police budget increase, that will not have a direct impact to reduce the violent crime in our city,” he said. “It’s clear to us that the police alone cannot reduce the violent crime.”
This story was originally published October 25, 2020 at 5:00 AM.