| Show A20 NATIONWORLD The Salt Lake Tribune 199 Puerto Rico Using Troops to Crash Crime THE ASSOCIATED into action seeking to lower a murder rate worse than any of the 50 states and to fulfill a campaign pledge It is the first time American military units g have been pressed into routine service with police The takeovers have ended shootouts at the projects and brought back frightened repair workers and mail carriers The operation also has been criticized as undemocratic by activists For Santo Almodovar repairing his corner snack shop inside the rundown Vista Hermosa (Beautiful View) project the takeover has returned something he thought was lost forever — security As he spoke with a reporter workers were busy nearby walling off the project to stop foot traffic and building a guard-pos- t at the single remaining street en PRESS SAN JUAN Puerto Rico — Soldiers in check every camouflage carrying passing car They stand guard alongside schools pockmarked with bullet holes They patrol nightly along lines where vrorkers are putting up walls topped with barbed wire Reminiscent of El Salvador and Vietnatt this military operation is taking place on US territory battling the enemy within — drugs gangs and violent crime : Hundreds of National Guard troops and police have taken over 23 public housing projects in this US Caribbean commonwealth since June often in swift nighttime operations complete with henect)ters and armored personnel carriers ' Gov Pedro Rossello ordered the Guard M-1- to control vehicles tranceway -It's a shame that we have to live in forts like the cowboys against the Indians but it works" said Almodovar 44 surveying empty streets that used to be crowded with outsiders many buying or selling drugs "They kill fewer people in some of these guerrilla wars in Latin America than they do here" be said From 1980 through Sept 27 killings claimed 8204 lives in Puerto Rico with new murder records set in 1991 and 1992 The 706 people killed so far this year — including five in one recent shootout at an unpatrolled housing project — is well above the 617 at the same point last year From the windows of her office in a nearby elementary school principal Armerda Perez used to watch drug sales crime-fightin- 12-fo- ot civil-righ- t some by children not much older than those she teaches and tries to protect on Christmas gangs shot up her school for target practice Another time panicked mothers who got wind of a shoot-ou- t pulled half the 320 pupils out of school within 20 minutes During another gunfight Perez huddled in her office metal shutters drawn with about 30 children A man was fatally shot outside the r before adjoining cafeteria — a the children recessed for lunch Vista Ilermoza was not even considered one of the worst of Puerto Ricu's 332 housing projects which are home to 332000 of its 38 million people When it was built three decades ago private guards rang a siren at 9 eacb night to tell children to head home But order disappared as many residents with jobs left as its population doubled as services crumbled as drugs took hold in the 1970s and never let go Now each night police and guardsmen ts the streets of the projects patrol -It's a dictatorship" said a man who would identify himself only as Pedro for fear of the authorities At 10 o'clock you have to turn off your stereo in your house" He said police ccmtinue to check the cars and papers of project residents they already know He called it harassment One policeman is under investigation for the shooting death of a resident who was trying to enter a housing project Sept 8 The island's police chief Pedro Toledo counters criticism by saying residents from 50 other prcjeets have demanded that authorities move in The government has not said how much the operation has cost About 500 guardsmen and police officers take part in the initial sweep of a project then 30 or so are assigned to daily patrols Those on patrol find themselves face to face with a part of the island that Puerto Rico tries its best to hide half-hou- V SL Comity Álvdous i Over Gangs A-- I 111 '71 U Continued from i 0 l Poq110C001)) 1 '' :i 0 v 4 11 El LI 1 1 s:::7) cr'si I 1 1 iI l'10r 1)0') f - - — mr11 MOP' MI - - -4 i ' 0 I ( ii ' s i lives in the Brighton High area !'Some children feel like they don't belong and gangs are a way r' 1: 1t 414 r () of belonging" ( r JP ) i ' " ''''' ' d ) k Ar- ' 4 i' ' t - ' tt 4lit 1 1 1 t "el I t 9 7 41 Ir 10'V 1 t—) ct I t :- i - '''''''''' r' - '' i '11 ' "4":14 i 44 - s'- I 4 '4'491Z ? ' ' ' ! 'i-- 1' 1 1 - 7 -- ' ' ' -:(- '''''''''''"''''' ' I - '':- :" - --- - t''' - :- '' : ' l'i : rct f: i - I 's f - N ' 04 - ) -- - 1 ' 1 1 '''- 's 4 '''''' 4 4ast) '4' A f While the gender breakdown - s k t ' r R '' e and feelings of residents ' t ' We have never had a survey in i ' 'Which more people were willing ' :1 f I to express their opinions" said i A i Sally Christensen chief execuj g tive officer for Valley Research the West Valley firm used by The n Tribune to conduct its polls "Respondents want stricter laws and harsher punish' inents for juvenile offenders as People said they don't feel safe ' : i ''''"-- as they used to" 0 f She also noted that of the number of respondents to the 23 ques' t - 4104' tions fewer than normal answered "unsure" N A tax increase for additional I enfc?cement received the highest support (76 percent) : Some 72 percent would be willing to tax themselves further for more proglithsand 71 percent approved of a tax hike for additional youth correc- 41 CA tional and detention facilities But When it came to money for more juvenile judges and probation officers the response cooled notice- it ably Nearly half said they would not support a tax increase to that east-sid- t I' ' ' 'r '0" f i - ' - 4 '' ' ' At -- Weil-sid- e ' '' i 1 i t 11' EiuEy t316§§Ed 138if ' Afiliibi8 - c i- -- - la 1 I 0 ilia if§i 1I Ed 1 §eh§e§: FeliViEf: t t 1 i i 1 §tifipile§ Jiff: 4Stilita Ifft 4:4 4444 - t i t' — - A d- ' - tiilljg CE18 fbit ihe Ofigih§ E6tifit81 if Rif COff8RiRd §E8fE fi6i aad IEFEWE i §13ead Effiple ' P I 'r-- - 'p ' z '- Ptif d' '' ' ' ' t" 4" c s '' ' ' i'''' 4 :I If 0 le f - " ' ' :' ' ' '- pa 081114§i 1 " f8f afti-- ilittlf81 EfRill plEi §8 FEE it 1§Etiiif Ofihrifi§ Whig Nh t P ' '' ' - 'IA' - : ' —"''') IA 7: Ait I 4'4 I : r ()Heil PldE§ fiElif filE af RfiRifilig: TiiWii §fFlid illI I ftF tifflE Pt:48 et E8 iii§§8fEl l' - ti '' - alai 1 ''' ' §eh§e§ af Rell Ed fata: Mk que§tiah§: L8f§ ef ''''' i—' ' ' - i ' - 4' - - plowed response differences there was minor if any variation g '1' F ":14 :4' s4 1 ::: I ? o r 1 ! 2 - - 'I ' ' ' ': 1' ! 4 - ' '4' ii8I'et1f §01 iEt§: frif t:alif IA ihfatighi wic '' - ::- e ''' :' ': iI 1 i al- I $ t i c ''' 1 ) 1 ' 1 though the problem is moving 7(1: lic4 — :: ''''As 1 I ? : - '3:t-0-- ‘ 2i ' ' 's 1 - ' ''' A y 3i i r 'j 41 4i--::"--- 11t' f:11 C- I I - : s'so) I?t : iiiii:EiRg: fidd§ 811 filif pu like: §eNaf3118fiR01 8iii ilid Fi§ 1 - 177-$ ' lk 81i II -- -- - Tratif 6816f : - ' Ofigin§§Itin OE depefid§ ° 0 C! I la 4 ffeillEitili fiEif 1 OflOR i§ ibetif cur-gent- ly authorities 1 afibt EffEfiElifE FRIEFIIE§ 1 El 4 iii8 (Milli§ EetifitEF §tBR - juvenile-correction- 111 ) - -- 04 -' ) 11:t 22-2- 5 ' '''''' n4 of society when pointing fingers "Parents need to be held responsible" said Pat Hales who The Tribune poll findings come on the eve of a special legislative session called by Utah Gov Mike Leavitt to deal with burgeoning gang violence State s ofand ficials will meet with the governor irt St George Thursday and Friday for a "gang summit" prior to the Oct 11 special session at the Capitol The Sept survey of 402 residents of Salt Lake County home to a majority of Utah's gang activities and to almost half of the state's population has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent Only adults were surveyed and 55 percent of those questioned were female : Among the other findings: Fewer than one in five residents has had a direct experience with gangs although many reported knowing of friends or relawith tives who have had run-in- s gangs Only 42 percent say most gang members are minorities an fact Anglos comprise the second largest gang segment in the valley) And 56 percent believe most gangs are located on the county's west side (That perception is true according to CZ k1 Nt oil' k (76 percent) But nearly two in three included themselves as part - wmaimd the court system (76 percent) and the violence on TV and in movies inlhe ' i 1 411111111111111011111MM AI I - 1 -- - 1 (r—it ' i agol kl - (( D r--- ) - 0 () II 1 - 4 ''''' - k 1 1 ' ' ' ' ''' ' il 1 I ' ' I t 1070 414Avo aoKriNgs b ' - 2' i if 4 1 '1 1tt 4 4 w 1 IA 1 - '" 'i public-Opinio- - ' ‘ N -- i -'' i ‘') 4- '- - i I -- n ''- - 4 A ( A ' " s - anti-gan- g - gang-preventi- j 1 At end I would be willing to pay exsaid Dyer of West Jordan "A lot of things which need to be done don't require a tax increase But they won't be done until additional money is put into the sys- tra" ? - of— '4 f 4 t' s - a '' it' 4 rnf C Ao r 1 r 0 - t ct ' ' A ) 0 ' ' ) s' kJ 4 tem: And respondents were adamant that support for neighborhood detention centers applied only to delinquent minors if the land for such a facility were available The objection level rose dramatically for an adult facility And while most people correctly placed the current center of they see gang activity west of don't feel it is contained there also see it moving to the east przt of town" said Davies who lives in Holladay "Ws everyone's qt44- - (I 'e4 I sorsis 1-- problem" III - r WWMm' — i ' (1 g i - Dii t'4PINIFFMNMPOMONIMMIERg L— 4 A ih it iMik iiiiil sae uuI |
