The plight of Detroit was covered in a scathing article in the Daily Mail Online, a British Publication. They called the city a “Wild West Motown,” and focused on the high crime rate and inability of police to stay ahead of the curve. But the article doesn’t include anything the people of Detroit weren’t already witnessing firsthand.
“Vigilante justice is rising in one of America’s most violent cities,” the article starts out, pointing out that there were 34 self-defense killings in the city.
73-year old Detroit resident Julia Brown says she carries her own handgun after she called the police last year and it took them an entire day to respond.
“We got to have a little Old West up here in Detroit,” said Brown. “That’s what it’s gonna take. I don’t intend to be one of their victims; I’m planning on taking one out.”
Another man who was the victim of crime, as held at gunpoint outside of his home in a fairly desirable part of town. There, the cops took more than 25 minutes to respond and neighbors came outside brandishing shotguns as the suspects ran away.
The picture painted in this article, though it has some of the same facts and statistics, is a bit more colorful than what we would see in the local papers. Is that because local media downplay the situation or because the British media want to make a sensational story?
The truth is, the number of justifiable homicides are over 2,200% higher than the national average here in Detroit; it takes the police about 24 minutes to respond to the highest priority calls, and things aren’t getting any better.
In January, the city began closing down precinct stations at 4pm to save money, to the outcry of the public. A decade ago there were 4,000 officers on the city’s force; now there are 2,700. Of course the population of Detroit has fallen dramatically, from 1.8 million in 1950 to 700,000 today, but this has left a huge shell of a city for officers to patrol.
Some wealthier communities are solving at least some of the problems by hiring private security firms to patrol their neighborhoods, knowing the police simply can’t. But those who live in poorer neighborhoods are left to fend for themselves.
This high crime and low police presence would make it more difficult to be caught in the commission of a crime. Perhaps that is part of the reason other crimes are also common– people see their risk of being caught as low.
When you do get caught, however, the criminal justice system of Detroit will have no qualms in prosecuting you to the fullest extent of the law.
If you are accused of a crime, and are unsure of what to do, contact our offices today for a free consultation.