Capt. Marsha Ashe: Police Beat

On Tuesday, Aug. 6, the Richmond Police District, in conjunction with the mayor's Neighborhood Crime Prevention Program, will host the first annual "National Night Out" to be held in San Francisco. The Richmond neighborhoods will join 9,700 other communities around the world to participate in "America's Night Out Against Crime."

National Night Out is designed to heighten crime and drug prevention, generate participation in local anti-crime efforts and strengthen neighborhood spirit and police-community partnerships. Most importantly, it is designed to send a clear message to criminals, letting them know your neighborhood belongs to you.

This is accomplished in large and small ways. We are encouraging neighborhoods to organize cookouts, parades, flashlight-walks, contests and youth activities. Officers in the district will make every effort to visit each block party. (I hope there are many!)

The station officers and I will participate by organizing a district-wide block party. We will host an evening cookout and station open house. This will begin at 6 p.m. at the mini-park located on Seventh Avenue, between Geary Boulevard and Anza Street. We plan a number of safety demonstrations, including an opportunity to see a police dog in action, meet with officers who work in your neighborhood and an evening parade.

Anyone who is interested in organizing their own block party should contact me, or Safety Awareness for Everyone (SAFE) at 533-1984, for more information. There is also an opportunity for merchants to participate by donating goods or services for a raffle, which will help fund next year's events.

And, speaking about taking a bite out of crime, one of our new officers, Kelly Dunn, stopped a violent crime wave in the district. In early June we had a two-night series of armed street robberies in which three goons armed with a handgun confronted a single pedestrian.

When confronted by an armed suspect, almost all the evidence supports handing over whatever is being asked for, regardless of whether or not you are on the street or working in a business.

With each police report the descriptions were the same and a vehicle was used. On the second night of the spree, Dunn was working alone when she responded to a robbery that had just been committed.

This time, a very observant and brave 15-year-old, who came to the aid of the victim, obtained a partial license plate number. Dunn went back to the police station and worked on every conceivable combination for the license plate.

Her efforts paid off big time. She made a "match" and contacted robbery inspectors Stephen Morimoto and Dan Laydon, who made the arrests of the suspects and are preparing a case for trial.

Officer Dunn is still a probationary officer, which means she is still being trained and evaluated. It's still too early to call, but if she keeps up this type of work we might just keep her!

Until next month, stay safe.

Capt. Marsha Ashe is the commanding officer at the Richmond District Police Station.