District 3 Advisory Board

District III Advisory Board Minutes for February 03, 2016 District III Advisory Board Minutes February 03, 2016 www.wichita.gov The District III Advisory Board meeting was held at 6:30 p.m. at the Wichita WATER Center, 101 E. Pawnee, Wichita, KS 67211; Vice Mayor Clendenin, ten District Advisory Board members; four City staff and ten signed in members of the public were present. Members Present Connie White Staff Present Gerald Henry Teia Wair, Community Service Representative Bruce Gass Wichita PD Officer Tammie Doshier Paul Davis Wichita PD Officer Justin Whyte Eric Bell Wichita PD Officer Nathan Schwiethale Cindy Miles Marjorie Griffith David Robbins Jessica Hutton Emily (Emy) Wintehalter (youth member) Guests Vice Mayor James Clendenin Listed on last page Members Absent Elena Ingle Terry Brewster ORDER OF BUSINESS At 6:30 p.m. Vice Mayor James Clendenin called the meeting to order. Agenda from the current meeting was approved. Minutes from meeting held on January 6, 2016 were approved. STAFF REPORTS Fire Report Reported that it has been pretty quiet. Fires were down. In December there were eight structure fires. They received 636 calls of that 636, 230 were service calls. In January there were three fires and none were considered arson. DAB? Is it policy for the Fire Department to respond to medical issues? A: Yes it is policy to have fire be dispatched on medical runs. In District III there were 736 medical runs. DAB? Are brush fires along the highway considered arson or accidental A: Brush fires are looked at as accidental. For instance a cigarette being flicked out a car window can cause a fire but this is not considered arson. Police Report Officer Justin Whyte reported that overall crimes are down. In the month of January there were 398 Reported Crimes in the East Bureau. 22 aggravated assaults, which 13 were domestic violence related with 10 arrests made. 59 auto thefts 20 of those victims left their vehicles running. 94 larceny from vehicles 22 of those the vehicles were unlocked. 151 larcenies which are shoplifting from buildings. 42 were arrested. 20 non-residential burglaries. 19 robberies to commercial buildings and highways. 1  District III Advisory Board Minutes for February 03, 2016 There were 8 arrests and 1 felony pickup issued. The investigations are currently open. There were 4 reported rapes. DAB? How many of those arrested for robbery are being held? A: Officer did not have the statistics on how many are retained and how many are released. Vice-Mayor James Clendenin mentioned that the suspect that robbed his home was recently released from jail. Officer Whyte stated that it all depends on how much evidence they have from the crime scene. DAB? With the excess crimes will they boost up policing in the area of 31st Street S. and Hillside area? A: Not at this time that he is aware. Right now the Police Department is understaffed. Vice-Mayor James Clendenin stated that property crimes they perform a lot of intelligent based policing to catch criminals and obtain stolen property. The new chief is very big on that type of policing. If you see anything suspicious that means call 911, so they can identify hot spots. They will be able to move officers around to cover the hot spots. The new police chief has a new policy on hiring. You will see policing as a second career. He is not big on throwing out candidates because they shoplifted when they were 14 years old like the Brady Giggly law states. He is looking for ways to hire officers. Someone may have committed a crime at a young age and now they are older and live a great life. That person could be a great officer. We are short roughly 30 officers 24 recently graduated the academy. Public? Citizen called 911 to report his vehicle being vandalized by someone with what looked like a BB gun, he was told they were already aware of this issue. An officer was not dispatched to his home. A: Vice-Mayor James Clendenin explained that anytime this happens ask that an officer contact you via telephone or advise that you want an officer to come by. Call Community policing for non-emergency issues. Patrol South’s number is 316 350-3420 Patrol East is 316 688-9545. Officer Doshier: Reported on BB gun vandalism they have a suspect vehicleand gave a detailed description of the vehicle. She advised if anyone sees this vehicle to contact Police. The graffiti issues on S. Broadway they have footage from a business camera and stated that a business owner provided information to help with this case. Auto theft is down but encouraged not to leave vehicles running; purchase a remote start. Vice-Mayor James Clendenin: Encouraged everyone to call 911 if you see anything suspicious. It is better to have an Officer come check things out verse not. Suspects are caught this way. PUBLIC AGENDA Scheduled Items Nathan Schwiethale, Homeless out Reach Team (HOT) provide information about the HOT team. The HOT team was established because between 2009-2011 homelessness nearly doubled. 911 would receive calls regarding homelessness, panhandling and drinking alcohol in public. After conducting research they decided this was a public guideline to attempt to help the homeless. In February of 2013 the Wichita Police Department established The Homeless Outreach Team (HOT). The days of arresting a homeless for drinking in the park are over. The Officers address the crime that the homeless are committing but they divert from taking the homeless to jail. Officer Schwiethale stated that he had arrested some of the same homeless people over and over for the past 10 years. Arresting the homeless is not the answer because the citizens have to pay for that. The HOT team provides resources to help the homeless overcome their obstacles. There is now a protection that eliminates arresting someone for being homeless and drinking in the park. The HOT team has partnered with the Advocate to End Chronic Homeless program. The team now works with homeless service providers and business to refer homeless individual’s to resources and programs that focus on trying to assist with the obstacles the homeless are facing rather than taking them to a jail cell. There is a program called Finding Away Home which provides bus passed to those needing to get to the home state or 2  District III Advisory Board Minutes for February 03, 2016 city. The HOT team is able to verify that the homeless person does not have outstanding warrants, isn’t on parole or probation. They also verify prior to placing the person on the bus that they have a legit place to live. This program has reunited 235 homeless with family. The HOT team has had contact with 7,125 homeless. To date they have made 1406 referrals to service providers that help the homeless become self-sufficient. 332 job referrals, 378 diverted charges, 65 Veteran Affair referrals, provided 1144 rides to and from referral agencies for services and 448 have found permit housing, while 292 homeless were picked up and taken to local shelters. Do not give panhandlers or homeless money a lot use that money to buy alcohol. Give them the HOT team phone number or buy them food or the items you think they will need. DAB? Do you find that there are a lot of veterans panhandling? A: No only a handful of those with the signs saying veteran are truly veterans. Ashley Throne, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), provided an overview of CASA as well as provided information about ways to become an advocate for youth in our community. CASA volunteers are advocates for those children placed in foster care. Removing a child from their home is very traumatic to a child despite the reason they are removed. As a CASA member you become the voice for a child without a voice. You are helping a child without a home find a permanent home. In Sedgwick County there are 1,200 children in foster care who have a right to a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). To become a CASA member you must be 21 years old, participate in a screening interview, provide three references and criminal and child abuse registry check. As a CASA member you would gather information by reviewing documents and records, interview the children, family and professionals in the child live.As well as you will appear in court, make recommendations of services needed. You will monitor the case plans and court orders as well keep the court informed. This is an opportunity to make a difference in a child’s life. You can be that mentor that oversees the success of a child in foster care. Vice-Mayor James Clendenin stated that we will add CASA information in the district newsletter and if you’re slightly interested please see Ashley or complete the pamphlet she provided. Off-agenda items None NEW BUSINESS Scheduled Items None BOARD AGENDA Updates, Issues, and Reports DAB? Compliments were granted to the City Council for taking action on the library. Vice-Mayor James Clendenin informed the DAB and the public about District III DAB breakfast. Discussed that the library system as well as the Advance Learning Library which was voted on Tuesday February 2, 2016 will be the topic of discussion. The new Advance Learning Library will be a library but will also take on a moto that a lot of libraries around the world are taking on. The new Advance Learning Library is going to have a lot of technology but still have hard copy books. He is very excited to talk about the new Advance Learning Library and encourages everyone to attend the DAB III breakfast Saturday February 27, 2016 at 9 am. Located at 3948 E. Harry. The DAB III Breakfast will be held at this location every other month. 3  District III Advisory Board Minutes for February 03, 2016 Meeting was adjourned The next meeting for the District Advisory Board III will be held at 6:30 p.m., March 2, 2016, at the Water Center located at 101 E. Pawnee. Respectfully submitted, Teia Wair, Community Service Representative – District III Guests Ronald Tracey Tom Strickland Betty Strickland Trisha Epps Lonny Wright Lynn Moore Catherine Johnson Daniel White Ashley White Kent Winterhalter 4