February 26, 2008
Morning Roundup: Bridges and Tunnels Edition
Good morning, Washington. Those of you who commute home on the 14th Street bridge may have had a bad time of it yesterday evening, as a bus accident caused one northbound lane to completely close while emergency crews attempted to clear the accident from the roadway. Another accident on I-395 inbound prior to the tunnel only made a bigger mess of things. But that was nothing compared to what early morning commuters way out in Hampton, Va., not far from Newport News, encountered today on I-64. Three horses were found wandering along the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, disrupting traffic for about 30 minutes. Your boss would likely believe you got in late due to an accident on your way in to work, but "wild horses wouldn't get out of the way of my car" just isn't likely to cut it.
Chief Lanier Reports Decline in Violent Crime: D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier testified before the D.C. Council yesterday that violent crime in the District is down significantly from last year. And it's technically true: there have been 16 homicides this so far in 2008, compared with 24 by the same date in 2007. By the same measure, assaults with deadly weapons are down by 36 percent, and violent crime overall is down 7 percent compared to last year. But comparing less than two months worth of data is hardly solace to residents who live near the locations of several recent drive-by shootings, and as Lanier herself said in her testimony, none of it means much until we arrive at the typically more violent summer months.
Schools Could Be Privately Managed: D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee said Monday she is considering contracting out management of some of the city’s most troubled public schools to private companies. There are 27 D.C. Schools that have not met the federal standards of the No Child Left Behind laws and which Rhee is now tasked with taking drastic measures to fix. Rhee said several companies are being considered, and mentioned Mastery Charter Schools, which has some experience with troubled schools in Philadelphia, as an example.
Briefly Noted: Pr. George's ex-official convicted in shooting ... 18 year-old woman missing in Fairfax County ... Soldier from D.C. killed in Iraq ... Rash of burglaries in Southeast.
Photo by esshots
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The District has wasted millions of dollars recruiting and training officers, Baumann said, only to see them bail for other departments that offer 20-year retirement, 10-hour work shifts, take-home vehicles and educational benefits.
Therein lies the problem. You can hire all the cops you want, but if you can't retain talent, what's the point? The next decade will be critical to DC. You've got a growing population of males between 18 and 35 (who commit the majority of violent crimes), an economic recession, and all those folks you arrested in the '90s are coming up for parole. The 2007 crime spike doesn't bode well for a sustained downtown recovery.
The chick has already returned home.
Having just saw Michael Clayton this weekend in prep for the Oscars, I would advise all those commuters on I-64 to GET OUT OF YOUR CARS! Random wild horses = car go boom!
(that's about the only thing I got out of the movie...that and I am Sheva, god of death.)
Fresh Horses! Mmmmmmmmm! Delicious!
The HRBT is pretty sweet. I feel for people who have to commute across it though, since it's (understandably) such a traffic-clogging tourist attraction. But man, it's awesome.
After seeing the fake police on "The Wire" cook the crime numbers for those COMSTAT meetings, I find it impossible to believe Lanier.
Dude, "The Wire" is in Baltimore. That would never happen in DC.
Why not wait 3 months for a quarterly report on crime...i know March is right around the corner but 2 months and 24 days seems like a short time period to be comparing crime statistics...and even she pointed out it all means nothing until June rolls around.