Our View

DEPUTIES AND RESIDENTS MUST SOLVE THE CRIME PROBLEM TOGETHER

There's a crime wave plaguing Cumberland County communities east of
the Cape Fear River, the people who live there say.

First he's heard of it, Sheriff Moose Butler responds.

We'll take both sides at their word and come to three conclusions:

What we have here is a massive failure to communicate.

Now that the sheriff has heard about it, residents should expect a
larger, more aggressive law enforcement presence in their rural communities.

The deputies can't do it alone - they need residents' help.

The situation is dire, some county residents say. In response to an
Observer reporter's questions, Godwin Mayor Deborah Tew wrote this:
"The presence of crack addicts and prostitutes in town has become all
too common. It is almost impossible to go to the store in Godwin
without being approached by one of these in search of money. If such
is allowed to continue there will be no community left for our
children and grandchildren."

That's not the worst of it. There are stories about shootings, "drug
houses," methamphetamine labs turning out large quantities of the
deadly drug, and break-ins - lots of break-ins, often by addicts
looking to finance their next trip to the meth dealer.

The break-in problem is a frustrating one, especially in areas
patrolled by the Sheriff's Office. According to the sheriff's
records, residents of communities east of the river lost about $3
million in property last year. There were 2,288 burglaries reported
to the sheriff's office last year, and only 5 percent of them ended
in an arrest. In North Carolina's 100 counties, only Richmond County
has a lower clearance rate. That has to improve.

But residents of places like Godwin need to take their share of the
responsibility too. Godwin residents called in 146 complaints to the
sheriff's office last year, and only one was about drugs. If
residents have as big a problem as they say, they've got to be more
vocal, and helpful, about it.

Sheriff's deputies have already increased their patrolling in the
areas east of the river, and they should escalate the offensive from
there. But residents have got to do their part. As residential growth
accelerates in what used to be farmland and forests, new
neighborhoods need to take more responsibility for their own safety.
Neighborhood watch programs are one excellent answer, one that has
succeeded in many other crime-plagued neighborhoods in Fayetteville
and other more heavily populated areas.

The crime problem east of the river is a worrisome one, a situation
that needs correcting before it becomes a cancer. There is no single
step that will fix it. The answer is a cooperative effort by law
enforcement and residents.

It starts with a good conversation.