Safety
Whenever a police cruiser pulls up to the curb framing Jamie Richard’s neatly manicured lawn, his heartbeat flutters. “I immediately think, ‘Which one of my kids is in trouble?’” he says. “I’ve been doing this a long time. I’m conditioned.” Richard opened North Star group home – a state-funded living facility for kids who, for a multitude of reasons, are wards of the court and in need of residential care – on Burbeck Avenue 20 years ago, and experience tells…
Rendell Pierce was watching television in his bedroom just after 10 p.m. Wednesday when he saw a flurry of lights through the window, accompanied by the thunder of gunfire.
After a manhunt that went through the night, police have captured a man suspected in a shooting rampage at a Richmond housing complex that sent one man to the hospital with gunshot wounds, a police spokesperson said.
Long-standing rifts between the Office of Neighborhood Safety and its critics have broken open following a fight last week involving youth from rival neighborhoods who had gathered inside City Hall.
DeVone Boggan, director of the Office of Neighborhood Safety, called 25 young men known as some of the most violent or at-risk youth in Richmond into the City Manager’s office in City Hall more than a year ago. He wanted to show them the fantastic view of the Bay Area and to make them an offer—he would take them on as ONS fellows if they were willing to take a chance on a new life. Almost all of them said…
The gunshot detection and location system is an invaluable investigative and response tool, police leaders say, but it has not been credited with nabbing any homicide suspects. Still, reduced costs and technological advances mean that the system is likely to be a long-term feature in Richmond.
The red-tagged building in the Iron Triangle that housed the “Bee Hive” — an illegal, underground club busted in mid-September — is now hanging in the balance as the property owner scrambles to make repairs. The owner of 512 MacDonald Ave., located across from the Nevin Center, agreed to make the changes required by code enforcement and the city attorney. But the initial deadline has come and gone due to problems obtaining a contractor. “The owner has been cooperating 100…
For almost 20 years, Ized Stewart has lived outside on the corner of 24th Street and Barrett Avenue. He’s a familiar presence, known to a generation of locals for surrounding himself with mounds of bags containing anything from garbage to stuffed animals. He’s often seen feeding the local birds, reading the newspaper or listening to his small radio. Some know him as George, some simply as “the bag man.” No one is quite sure how he ended up homeless in…
The ominous gray clouds creeping over the hills and dampness blanketing the city tell Sgt. Eddie Russell it’s going to be a slow day. “Rain usually keeps them off the street,” he says from behind the wheel of his cruiser But less than half an hour into his Tuesday morning patrol, Russell spots what appears to be two teenaged boys strolling down the sidewalk of a residential neighborhood. At first glance, they don’t seem to be breaking any laws –…