Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM DECEMBER 7 - 13, 2022 UCW 7 NEWS MICHAEL FUTCH, CityView Today. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomingweekly. com. 910-484-6200. e number of homicides and the overall crime rate have continued to climb over the past year, according to police statistics presented to the Fayetteville City Council on Nov. 28. From January through September, 36 homicides were reported, statistics show. at is a 9% increase compared to this time a year ago, when 33 homi- cides were reported. e numbers are nothing new. e last quarterly report from Fayetteville Police Chief Gina Hawkins showed the same upward trend in total crime and homicides. e report also noted that the de- partment has a total of 392 positions filled out of a budgeted 431. Hawkins was the lead presenter of the crime report during the council's monthly meeting at City Hall. Assist- ing her were Assistant Police Chiefs Kemberle Braeden and James Nolette. "I always like to share the amazing work that the Police Department does for the community," Hawkins said. "And this is a summary snapshot." e number of rapes reported in the city continued to decline, from 68 in 2021 to 58 in 2022, Braeden said. Aggravated assault reports rose by 9.8%, from 816 cases in 2021 to 896 as of Sept. 28, according to Braeden. "e third quarter was mainly un- eventful," Braeden said. Hawkins left immediately after the meeting and was unavailable for ad- ditional comment. Nolette said after the meeting that the department has been successful addressing crime. "e department is doing exactly what it needs to," Nolette said. "It's a partnership with the community. It's a partnership with nonprofits in finding solutions and outside-the-box thinking to address crime at its core, problem-solving and really evaluating what is causing the issue. ere are so many different factors that go into crime itself, but we look at the location of the crime where it's occurring, we look at the victim, and we look at the suspects and try to figure out why it's happening at those places." When asked, Nolette said the num- bers indicate that the Police Depart- ment could be doing a better job. "I'm a little biased to ask that ques- tion because I think we're doing a good job," he said. "But can we do better? Sure. We do really well. We have almost 100% clearance rate in homicides … We're above the average in clearance rates. We don't report to the end of the year, but that is some- thing that we track, and we're above national average in clearance rates on many of our crimes." Nolette said the clearance rate is when the department has "closed out cases and arrested or sought charges on suspects who have committed crime." "What we do a good job at — and what the officers do a good job at — is identifying crime trends and getting ahead of those crime trends. So that way, we don't perpetuate the process victimizing the citizens of Fayetteville." Police representatives reported that the number of drug overdoses dropped from 67 to 50, a decrease of 25.4%. e police statistics also showed: A total of 3,164 personal crimes have been reported over the first nine months of this year, up from 3,005 in 2021. at's an increase of 5.3%. "Person's crimes run the gamut from communication by threat — 'I'm going to shoot you' — to pointing the gun, which is another crime, to actu- ally shooting someone; shooting and hitting someone; to actually attempt- ed murder," Braeden said. Property crime — which includes trespassing, damage to property, vandalism, and breaking and entering — has increased by 29.90%, from 7,809 cases last year to 9,295 in 2022. "Again, as we look at those, those have slightly increased over the last year," Braeden said. "As I would say, as we spoke earlier during [Fire] Chief [Mike] Hill's presentation about CO- VID, we have gone from people being home during COVID and we can see why there has been an increase in 2022 as post-COVID people going out of their residences back to work ..." Felonies are up 23%, with 782 ar- rests this year. at compares with 620 a year ago. Motor vehicle thefts also pose a problem, with the Monday report showing an increase of 36.92% over the last quarterly report. FPD: Homicides, overall crime continue to increase by MICHAEL FUTCH, CityView Today A newly-formed nonprofit organiza- tion, the North Carolina Alliance for Safe Transportation, or NCAST, has launched an inaugural traffic safety campaign. e message is for parents or guardians to make sure the vehicles teens drive include appropriate safety features, and to discourage young motorists from driving distracted. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens. Every day in the U.S. an average of eight teens ages 13–19 die from motor vehicle crash injuries. Per mile driven, teen drivers ages 16–19 have a fatal crash rate almost three times as high as driv- ers ages 20 and older. According to NCDOT statistics for 2021, in North Carolina there were 49,606 crashes involving teen drivers, resulting in 10,901 injuries and 102 fatalities. e NCAST ad will run during the 2022 holiday season on social media outlets (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) and on statewide cable television. It features a portrayal of a mom and daughter discussing the important vehicle safety features, and highlights distractions — such as loud music, snacking, and using a mobile phone — teen drivers should avoid when behind the wheel. e ad, and links to resources for parents and teen drivers, can be found on the NCAST website, www.ncal- lianceforsafetransportation.com. "NCAST was conceived by a coalition of organizations and indi- viduals committed to making North Carolina roads and highways safer for everyone," said Joe Stewart, vice president for governmental affairs for the Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina, and initial chair of the NCAST board. "is organization was formed to collaborate with existing issue-specific safety groups, to amplify and enhance message impact with the very specific goal of changing driving behaviors that lead to crashes, injuries and deaths among motorist, pedestri- ans, bicyclists, and others using North Carolina's trans- portation infrastructure." "I am pleased and delighted to be a part of getting this organization up and running," said Tiffany Wright, director of public affairs for AAA Caro- linas — the Auto Club Group and vice chair of the NCAST board. "NCAST will use research and analysis to figure out who needs to hear the message, and what that mes- sage needs to be, given the particular transportation safety issue being ad- dressed." NCAST has received a grant from the North Carolina Governor's Highway Safety Program of $272,000 to help cover initial operational and staffing costs, as well as a $50,000 grant from IIANC for the develop- ment and placement of the initial teen driver awareness campaign ads. e organization has plans to conduct other awareness campaigns in 2023, including initiatives around Distracted Driving Awareness Month in April, high school prom and sum- mer vacation seasons, as well as Teen Driver Safety Week in October. New nonprofit transportation safety organization launched, focusing on teen drivers a STAFF REPORT