Ramsey Announces Crime Fighting Plan

Chief Wiggum and Commish Ramsey: separated at birth?

On first examination, it is a whole lot of nuthin'. On a closer examination, it is still a whole lot of nuthin'. Read this over and tell me if I'm wrong:

PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ― Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey unveiled his crime-fighting strategy to sworn and civilian Philadelphia Police personnel at the Wachovia Center Wednesday morning.

Ramsey said there is "nothing fancy" about his Crime Control Strategies Plan; compiled in response to Mayor Michael Nutter's declaration of a "crime emergency." It is a return to the "basics of policing." The commissioner said his goal is to have 200 additional patrol officers on the street by May 1, with a concentration in the crime-infested neighborhoods and establishing Targeted Enforcement Zones within those nine most violent districts.

Some other highlights of Ramsey's strategy include reducing the homicide rate by 20-percent and more than 30-50-percent over the next three to five years.

Ramsey's plan includes, decreasing the number of shooting victims and violent crimes by 20-percent, increase the number of guns removed from the streets by five-percent and increase the homicide clearance rate by 65-percent.

The commissioner stated the need to significantly reduce the backlog of 6,000 pieces of ballistic evidence waiting testing and detailed his plan to reorganize the command structure by the end of March.

Ramsey stated the need for community involvement and an increase in security cameras. (H/T - CBS3)

Did I miss something here? I don't see where Ramsey explains how he will reduce homicides and violent crimes. He threw out a lot of numbers when talking about percentage declines, but didn't exactly elaborate upon how he would be getting it done. The extra 200 officers on the street is a terrific idea - Lord knows we need them - but 200 officers comes to an average of only eight officers per district. Divide that by the three tours of duty, and it's only an increase of two officers per eight-hour shift. That is not all that impressive, but it's a start.

The bright spot in this plan is that many of the officers who attended the meeting came back with the impression that Ramsey really seems to care, and that is something that was lacking under Commissioner Johnson. I'll give Ramsey the benefit of the doubt for now, but again, it's early.