Katrina Victims Blamed for Houston Crime

[MikeJ]

Police in Houston Blame Katrina Evacuees in Part for the City's Rising Homicide Toll

By PAUL J. WEBER
HOUSTON Aug 15, 2006 (AP)— A letter to inmate No. 1352951 and a cell phone bill for $76.63, both found in a soggy New Orleans duplex ruined by Hurricane Katrina, led Louisiana bounty hunter James Martin to Texas. Again.

It marked the seventh time since Katrina that Martin, whose pursuit of bail jumpers often begins with clues salvaged from abandoned New Orleans homes, has followed a trail to Texas.

"I don't think Texas really knows what they got," Martin said.

Katrina sent a lot of bad guys to Texas, as Houston is finding out.

Houston took in 150,000 evacuees the most of any U.S. city after Katrina struck on Aug. 29. Houston police believe the evacuees are partly responsible for a nearly 17.5 percent increase in homicides so far this year over the same period in 2005.

About 21 percent of Houston's 232 homicides through July 25 involved an evacuee as either a suspect or a victim, according to police, who attribute much of the bloodshed to fighting among rival New Orleans gang members.

"New Orleans allowed a lot of these guys to stay on the street for whatever reason or be picked up and released after 60 days," said Capt. Dale Brown, who oversees Houston's homicide division. "Texas law, I don't want to say it's tougher, but we take these offenses very seriously."

Judge Robert Eckels, chief executive of Harris County, which includes Houston, said Katrina evacuees arrested in the Houston have cost the county's criminal justice system more than $18 million. In June, Texas Gov. Rick Perry sent $19.5 million to Houston to help pay for additional officers and overtime to police the city after Katrina.

The police and the Harris County sheriff's department said they have no figures on how many Katrina evacuees have been arrested. Houston police said misdemeanor and felony arrests overall actually dropped last fall from the same period a year earlier. But the sheriff's department reported a 41 percent increase in felony arrests in November from the year before.

"I think some saw (Katrina) as an opportunity," Martin's bounty-hunting partner, Michael Wright, said of evacuees who fled New Orleans with criminal records. "No one knows who they are over here."

(Page 2 of 2)

Katrina evacuees received fair warning when they arrived in Houston. Days after the storm, Mayor Bill White went on television, flanked by Houston police, and welcomed Katrina's bedraggled survivors with a stern warning that a jail cell was waiting for anyone who crossed the line.

Evacuee Vincent Wilson, a leader of the Katrina Survivors Association, was impressed. He said that in New Orleans before Katrina, "everyone knows that if the jail's crowded you get a slap on the hand and get released."

Eckels predicted the county's worst guests will go home once their federal assistance dries up. And if many choose to stick around, the county will be ready: "We don't put up with it here. If you break the law, you're going to be prosecuted."


On the Net:

Houston police: http://www.houstontx.gov/police

Louisiana Capital Assistance Center: http://www.thejusticecenter.org/lcac


Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


Stories like this and those that leak out about the gross misuse of funds and downright theft makes you wonder about the governments way of giving aid. Couldn't they spend a fraction of this money on improving disbursement of funds and prosecution of those who take advantage of our policies?

Vote the bastards out of office?

[oloenneker]

Time to round them up and send them back to New Orleans.

[cruller]

Jacksonville FL crime rate has shot up post Katrina...

New Orleans while full of culture, food and music was also full of more filthy evil bastards per square mile than anywhere else in this country.

It's not like if those people get disbursed all of the sudden they are going to fly right.

[oloenneker]

Originally posted by cruller
Jacksonville FL crime rate has shot up post Katrina...

New Orleans while full of culture, food and music was also full of more filthy evil bastards per square mile than anywhere else in this country.

It's not like if those people get disbursed all of the sudden they are going to fly right.



Imagine if we had to re-locate the population of Los Angeles or Atlanta??? Washington DC!?!

Expect your crime levels to rise as well.. Where there is poverty, there is crime.

[renaissanse man]

So what's your solution, genius? Please enlighten us all with your infinite wisdom. (My hands are clasped beneath my chin).Get ready everyone, the chosen one is about to speak...(Holding my breath and listening intently).

[oloenneker]

Originally posted by renaissanse man
So what's your solution, genius? Please enlighten us all with your infinite wisdom. (My hands are clasped beneath my chin).Get ready everyone, the chosen one is about to speak...(Holding my breath and listening intently).

if you where expecting a solution, I must confess, I do not have one. But I can elude to the fact that poverty is directly related to crime. Abolish poverty, and crime goes to the wayside.

But, on the other hand, poverty is a direct product of a capatalistic society. As long as Capatalism is in power across the world, poverty will also be present.


How's that for infinite wisdom?


Whatever....

[keither]

Originally posted by oloenneker

Originally posted by renaissanse man
So what's your solution, genius? Please enlighten us all with your infinite wisdom. (My hands are clasped beneath my chin).Get ready everyone, the chosen one is about to speak...(Holding my breath and listening intently).

if you where expecting a solution, I must confess, I do not have one. But I can elude to the fact that poverty is directly related to crime. Abolish poverty, and crime goes to the wayside.

But, on the other hand, poverty is a direct product of a capatalistic society. As long as Capatalism is in power across the world, poverty will also be present.


How's that for infinite wisdom?


Whatever....

Howz this for infinite wisdom Mr. "poverty is a direct product of a capatalistic society":

New Orleans was the recipient of more welfare dollars, aka "a redistribution of income", aka "socialism", aka "the anti-capitalism" than most U.S. cities.

Sorry, but third, forth and fifth generational welfare that the American leftist Democrats push and push just doesn't work.

[oloenneker]

Originally posted by keither
[B
Howz this for infinite wisdom Mr. "poverty is a direct product of a capatalistic society":

New Orleans was the recipient of more welfare dollars, aka "a redistribution of income", aka "socialism", aka "the anti-capitalism" than most U.S. cities.

Sorry, but third, forth and fifth generational welfare that the American leftist Democrats push and push just doesn't work.

[/B]

I guess so.

So Mr. "Competetion Breeds Excelence" how would you solve the poverty problem? I guess you are against Re-distribution of income, but you are fine with wasting billions of dollars on a war? Thats kinda loopy.

[acmanko]

segregation worked for centuries, then a Republican got elected and the world went to crap

[jacob perkins]

Originally posted by acmanko
segregation worked for centuries, then a Republican got elected and the world went to crap

yeah,yeah....and that Katrina thing was phoney too.
Sure there was a hurricane, like I really believe that.

[MikeJ]

Originally posted by oloenneker

Originally posted by cruller
Jacksonville FL crime rate has shot up post Katrina...

New Orleans while full of culture, food and music was also full of more filthy evil bastards per square mile than anywhere else in this country.

It's not like if those people get disbursed all of the sudden they are going to fly right.



Imagine if we had to re-locate the population of Los Angeles or Atlanta??? Washington DC!?!

Expect your crime levels to rise as well.. Where there is poverty, there is crime.



I got away from my own post for awhile. Been busy with other things.


I notice no one blamed the government other than the usual Dem slamming. Well, maybe they deserve it. My take is that no one was there to prevent abuses of the huge amounts of money in Katrina aid. Politicians had their hands in the collection plate too. Ever see any charges for theft?

Any accountablility or registering of people displaced and relocated? Any followups to see if they were 'willing and able to work' now that they were given rent, food stamps, clothes, etc? Not! Just told where to go to get more money.

And those in civil service who lost their jobs? How did we treat them? Who knows? Anyone?

If we have to relocate anyone again, I hope we use better sense when we do. How about a new terrorist bombing? We gonna make millionaires out of the relatives of the victims? I hope not. When the average joe dies the family gets the money in his wallet and his bills.

[James 3528]

Louisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D), is presently asking the Congress for $250 BILLION to rebuild New Orleans.

Interesting number, what does it mean?

A.. Well, if you are one of 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every
Man, woman, child), you each get $516, 528.

B.. Or, if you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans, your home gets $1, 329,787.

C..Or, if you are a family of four, your family gets $2,066,012.

[acmanko]

we might have to double those figures ,N.O. lost half its population

[bb]

Originally posted by oloenneker

Originally posted by renaissanse man
So what's your solution, genius? Please enlighten us all with your infinite wisdom. (My hands are clasped beneath my chin).Get ready everyone, the chosen one is about to speak...(Holding my breath and listening intently).

if you where expecting a solution, I must confess, I do not have one. But I can elude to the fact that poverty is directly related to crime. Abolish poverty, and crime goes to the wayside.

But, on the other hand, poverty is a direct product of a capatalistic society. As long as Capatalism is in power across the world, poverty will also be present.


How's that for infinite wisdom?


Whatever....

Poverty is also directly proportional to lazyness.

[chillbilly]

But I can elude to the fact that poverty is directly related to crime. Abolish poverty, and crime goes to the wayside.
__________________________________________________ ______

First; No one "eludes" to a fact....they "allude" to a fact.
Second; How would you propose that poverty be abolished?
Another series of handouts normally associated with bleeding heart liberals? Government sponsored entitlements?
This country is already in deep crap because of the entitlement programs whose money is spent as fast as it is collected.
Poverty cannot be abolished because it's not a dilemma that would, could or should be addressed by ANY government.
The solution is found in socio-economic factors and individual initiative.
In other words, if the economic conditions are favorable and the individual has enough spine to get off their ass and make their own way, everything works out just dandy.

[oloenneker]

In other words, if the economic conditions are favorable and the individual has enough spine to get off their ass and make their own way, everything works out just dandy.


And as long as we continue to farm out manufacturing jobs to other countries, and have illegal alien willing to work for lower than American living wages, poverty among Americans will continue to rise. Have you ever heard of the "working poor"?

If we start to impose proper tarrifs on consumer good being imported from china, maybe American manufacturers will be forced to produce their products here, which will also produce more jobs, which is a step in eradicating powerty. It seems crazy that the wealthiest country in the world, has this amout of people living under the powerty level..Not to mention lack of access to helth care etc.

[acmanko]

as long as our government has a system of entitlements, we will have poverty.

[-80guru]

As long as mankind is alive there will be poverty. You CANT get rid of it

[oloenneker]

Originally posted by -80guru
As long as mankind is alive there will be poverty. You CANT get rid of it

That is true. But we CAN reduce it...

[chillbilly]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by oloenneker

And as long as we continue to farm out manufacturing jobs to other countries, and have illegal alien willing to work for lower than American living wages, poverty among Americans will continue to rise.
__________________________________________________ _____

The governemnt cannot control where companies decide to do business, genius. If it's more profitable for them to do business elsewhere, America will have to find better ways to keep that sucking sound Ross Perot ALLUDED to, from becoming commonplace.

Also, you are conveniently straying away from my original point about your absurd statement concerning "abolishing poverty".
What do you expect? That the government will just wave their wand and eradicate poverty? That's not their role.
They have overstepped their boundaries with massive handouts already.
That's the problem with you big government activists.
You're always looking for band aids to remedy arterial bleeding instead of understanding root causes and applying a back to basics approach.
I would hope you understand how our government works and how the 3 branches are designed to provide the checks and balances needed.
I would also hope you could understand that business objectives and incentives use a different set of criteria to operate.



Have you ever heard of the "working poor"?
__________________________________________________ ______
Yeah. Are the government and the people who were motivated enough to get the training to succeed responsible for those in our society who lack the skills and training needed to avoid poverty?
Whatever happened to dedication and drive?




If we start to impose proper tarrifs on consumer good being imported from china, maybe American manufacturers will be forced to produce their products here, which will also produce more jobs, which is a step in eradicating powerty.
__________________________________________________ _______
Wrong! This is the tax and spend method of fake correction that has been deep throated and swallowed by the unsuspecting masses eager to show their fabricated numbers to get people elected. I commonly refer to you guys as "numbers faggots".
Overtaxing(those goods are already taxed) everything from cigarettes- to- fuel- to kites made in China is NOT a policy that endures.
It is a failed economic policy that always must be corrected by the laws of supply and demand.



It seems crazy that the wealthiest country in the world, has this amout of people living under the powerty level..Not to mention lack of access to helth care etc.
__________________________________________________ ________

Do you even know the percentages of people living below the standard "poverty level"?
And about these jobs you were referring to...do you know what the current unemployment rate is?

Health care...hmmmm...I distinctly remember hearing that there are more lobbyists on Capitol Hill representing physicians and powerful insurance companies than any other lobby.
You think our legislators are going to give up their substantial retirement plan, perpetual pay raises and bite the powerful lobbyists hands that feed them?
NOT.

[oloenneker]

If we start to impose proper tarrifs on consumer good being imported from china, maybe American manufacturers will be forced to produce their products here, which will also produce more jobs, which is a step in eradicating powerty.
__________________________________________________ _______
Wrong! This is the tax and spend method of fake correction that has been deep throated and swallowed by the unsuspecting masses eager to show their fabricated numbers to get people elected. I commonly refer to you guys as "numbers faggots".
Overtaxing(those goods are already taxed) everything from cigarettes- to- fuel- to kites made in China is NOT a policy that endures.
It is a failed economic policy that always must be corrected by the laws of supply and demand.



Can you then explain why importers from some countries have to pay substantially higher tarrifs, compared to say, China?

I guess you could care less about the American production worker, and only worry about being able to buy cheap garbage at Wal-Mart? I guess this has become the norm. Too bad there are too many people in this world that are only concered with "me first, gimme gimme'.