Salem councilors pledge to review rise in crime

Feb. 26—SALEM — Following a recent streak of shootings and stabbings, city councilors plan to meet with police and discuss what resources they need to combat violent crime in Salem.

On Thursday night, the City Council green-lit a call from Ward 7 Councilor Steve Dibble to "meet immediately with Salem police to discuss the recent string of violent crimes throughout Salem." The conversation, to be held in the City Council's public health committee, aims to detail "what police are doing to stop it (the crime) from continuing and share what they can on successes they have on each matter, what additional resources are needed, and how ... the Council and all residents can assist."

The calls come after years of violent crimes around the city, some of which remain unresolved. Three shootings were reported in 2019, with two more in 2020. The last incident that year took place Aug. 25.

There have been three incidents so far this year: two people were shot in a Perkins Street apartment on Jan. 24, and a man was shot Feb. 14 outside Brothers Taverna on Derby Street. Most recently, on Feb. 21, a double stabbing was reported on Boston Street, not far from the Peabody line.

In several of the cases, police said the victims were specifically targeted, meaning there were no further threats to the community.

Dibble said four residents had contacted him concerned about the recent rise in violence.

"We can all be proud of the work that the Salem Police Department does. They've acted really fast and already made several arrests," he said Thursday. "I talked to the Chief yesterday, and I look forward to hearing from them on ways that all of us can help and learn of the efforts in detail from our excellent police department, and determine if they have enough resources."

Most of the incidents have happened within The Point, a majority-minority neighborhood with a strong Hispanic and Latino community. Organizations have worked for years to spotlight the culture and pride of the neighborhood, seen everywhere from newly established community spaces to urban art decorating North Shore Community Development Coalition buildings.

Bob McCarthy, who represents The Point on the City Council, praised the police department Thursday night.

"When any kind of incident hits the papers, obviously it's concerning," McCarthy said. "But at the same time, what our police department does behind the scenes is phenomenal, and what they do to solve crimes goes to great policing.

"It's their job to do this job," McCarthy continued, "and they do it very well."

Fran Riggieri, a Lafayette Street resident, lobbied for officials to take a similar approach to what he saw play out in Worcester in the mid-1990s.

"Looking back in 1994, I resided in Worcester, Mass. when violent crime was escalating in many communities," Riggieri said. "Action was taken by the federal, state and local communities to allocate resources to reduce violent crime."

Riggeri recalled several officials — among them state legislators, district attorneys and sheriffs — traveling to Washington, D.C., which he said led to a $1.9 million infusion to community policing in Worcester.

Federal funding, Riggieri said, was "allocated to local communities to hire police to increase the presence in the streets, and to allocate and include police walking and biking neighborhoods to build relationships with the residents and have a presence."

The police department already operates a Community Impact Unit that keeps tabs on city issues, including homelessness. Harry Rocheville, a recently retired police officer who previously ran the unit, and acting police Chief Dennis King were in attendance Thursday. King attempted to speak on Dibble's effort but couldn't due to technical issues.

The issue cleared the City Council unanimously, triggering a future meeting that King has reportedly said he's eager to speak at, according to City Councilor-at-large Conrad Prosniewski. Also a retired police officer who helped lead the Community Impact Unit, Prosniewski declined to comment Thursday on the issue ahead of the upcoming committee meeting.

"We all live in Salem," Dibble said. "Salem is awesome, and we should all work to protect our city."

To respond to this story or suggest another, contact Dustin Luca at 978-338-2523 or DLuca@salemnews.com. Follow him at facebook.com/dustinluca or on Twitter @DustinLucaSN.