December 13, 2024 Breaking News, Latest News, and Videos

Residents Call For Safety Amid Crime: 75-Year-Old Woman Robbed in Broad Daylight Causes Community Cries for Help

By Armen Melkonians

 

Last week, my 75-year-old mother-in-law was assaulted and robbed on Lincoln Boulevard near Hill Street. She was walking on the sidewalk in broad daylight when a car stopped and someone got out, shoved her, and ripped her cross from her neck. She fought back and was dragged by the car as she tried to get her cross back. She’s one tough cookie. Ended up with bad bruises and scrapes. No broken bones. She’s a 26-year resident of Santa Monica. She doesn’t drive, but walks at least 4 to 5 miles per day, as she has for the last 26 years. This is the first time something like this has happened to her.

The crime in Santa Monica is getting unmanageable. We hear about something every day from someone we know, and now it’s hit home for me.

Our City officials welcomed the Metro and the densification of Santa Monica with open arms. They made plans upon plans. Over a decade in the making, with a thousand public hearings to change Santa Monica. They made fortunes for developers while securing their own political power. The new Zoning Plan, Bike Plans, Mobility Plans, Downtown Plan, Bergamot Plan, Walking Plans, Millennial Plans, bogus plans. You name it, and City Hall has a plan for it. But there’s one plan that’s missing, and that’s the Safety Plan.

We pay our City Manager, our Police Chief, our Police Captains, our City Attorneys, and our City Planners an absurd amount of money each year. Our City officials say they want the best and to get the best we must pay for it. Well, it’s a shell game. Nobody at City Hall planned for our safety. Nobody cared, even the best. They all just got rich while scratching each other’s backs.

There’s no safety plan. And we the residents are paying the high price. In the 2016 elections, the Police Officers Association and most of our elected officials opposed Measure LV, a slow growth measure by Residocracy. They manufactured a “Public Safety” concern. They argued that the city would be unsafe after an earthquake and that crime would run rampant as buildings would sit empty. What a bunch of baloney.

Well, I got news for our elected officials and the Police Officers Association…it’s unsafe now and our elected officials are to blame.

How did City Hall, in all its glory and high paid staff, fail to plan for our safety? Why is crime so rampant that criminals feel emboldened enough to assault and rob a 75-year-old woman in broad daylight, on a busy street, without a second thought of being caught? Why did our elected officials not plan to significantly increase the size of our police force with the arrival of the Metro and with all the fancy plans to densify Santa Monica? Why do we not have a Safety Plan and how did politics and political back scratching get in the way of our Public Safety?

We must demand answers and we deserve a safe Santa Monica. We must hold our elected officials accountable. Why are we here and how do we fix it? The crime rate in Santa Monica is climbing and it’s getting out of control. We deserve better.

Map of crimes in Santa Monica
Crimes reported in the Santa Monica area in the last four weeks for Arson, Assault, Burglary, Disturbing the Peace, Drugs / Alcohol Violations, DUI, Homicide, Motor Vehicle Theft, Robbery, Sex Crimes, Theft / Larceny, Vandalism, Vehicle Break-In / Theft, Weapons.
Photo: crimemapping.com.

Armen Melkonians is the founder of Residocracy.

<>Related Posts

SM.a.r.t Column: Climbing The Vertical Learning Curve

December 8, 2024

December 8, 2024

The city is facing a financial crisis, the roots of which stretch back decades but have been made worse by...

SM.a.r.t Column: It’s Time To Inspect Balconies

November 24, 2024

November 24, 2024

About nine years ago, a fifth-floor balcony in a Berkeley apartment building collapsed, tragically killing several students gathered on it...

S.M.a.r.t Column: Your City is Broke

November 18, 2024

November 18, 2024

On December 10, the new City council will be seated fresh from their dominant win in the recent elections. There...

SM.a.r.t Column: Moving Ahead to the Future

November 10, 2024

November 10, 2024

As we write this, the election results are still trickling in. We’ll leave the deep analysis to others, but the...

Opinion: Fact Check: Why Vote Yes on Measure QS

November 1, 2024

November 1, 2024

Despite living in a famously progressive region, Santa Monicans are not immune from the same political misinformation and disinformation that...

SM.a.r.t Column: Lack of Oversight and No Accountability

October 31, 2024

October 31, 2024

S.M.a.r.t. periodically invites guest columnists to write opinion articles on topics of particular interests to our readers. Below is an...

SM.a.r.t Column: “Help! I’ve Fallen, and I …!!”, Cries Santa Monica!

October 25, 2024

October 25, 2024

Maybe fallen, but slipping for sure from being a desirable beachfront community that served all equally, the local residents who...

SM.a.r.t. Column: Vote

October 13, 2024

October 13, 2024

In a polarized country or City every vote counts. Regardless of which side of any issue or candidate you support,...

SM.a.r.t Column: Fact-Checking Election-Season Windbaggery

October 6, 2024

October 6, 2024

Claim: The state is requiring Santa Monica to build 9,000 apartments.Answer: Partially true, partially false. Santa Monica has a pretty...

SM.a.r.t. Column: Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Can Help Save Lives and Revitalize Santa Monica’s Economy

September 29, 2024

September 29, 2024

We wholeheartedly endorse the candidates below for Santa Monica City Council. Their leading campaign platform is for increased safety in...

SM.a.r.t Column: Crime in Santa Monica: A Growing Concern and the Need for Prioritizing Public Safety

September 22, 2024

September 22, 2024

By Michael Jolly Over the past six months, Santa Monica has experienced a concerning rise in crime, sparking heated discussions...

SM.a.r.t Column: Ten New Commandments

September 15, 2024

September 15, 2024

Starting last week,  the elementary school students of Louisiana will all face mandatory postings of the biblical Ten Commandments in...

SM.a.r.t Column: Santa Monica’s Next City Council

September 8, 2024

September 8, 2024

In the next general election, this November 5th, Santa Monica residents will be asked to vote their choices among an...

SM.a.r.t Column: Part II: The Affordability Crisis: Unmasking California’s RHNA Process and Its Role in Gentrification

September 2, 2024

September 2, 2024

Affordability: An Income and Available Asset Gap Issue, Not a Supply Issue (Last week’s article revealed how state mandates became...

SM.a.r.t Column: Part 1: The Affordability Crisis: Unmasking California’s RHNA Process and Its Role in Gentrification

August 26, 2024

August 26, 2024

In the world of economic policy, good intentions often pave the way to unintended consequences. Nowhere is this more evident...