---
title: "Crime Suppression Unit"
type: "pdf"
year: "1995"
canonical: "/projects/1153"
---
# SCANNING
Prior to the survey that was started on January 17, 1992, the Crime Suppression Unit had been targeting the crimes and offenses that the police and the Police Department had determined were of highest priority. Even though the Crime Suppression Officers were quite effective in handling these offenses, the citizens were still making many complaints about not "feeling safe" in the downtown area.
# Table of Contents
- [SCANNING](#scanning)
- [ANALYSIS](#analysis)
- [RESPONSE](#response)
- [ASSESSMENT](#assessment)
- [SUMMARY](#summary)
- [POP TRACKING FORM](#pop-tracking-form)
- [POP DATA SHEET](#pop-data-sheet)
- [CITY AGENCIES CONTACTED](#city-agencies-contacted)
- [COUNTY AGENCIES CONTACTED](#county-agencies-contacted)
- [STATE AGENCIES CONTACTED](#state-agencies-contacted)
- [FEDERAL AGENCIES CONTACTED](#federal-agencies-contacted)
- [OTHER ACTION TAKEN](#other-action-taken)
- [OFFICER'S LOG](#officers-log)
- [NARRATIVE SUMMARY](#narrative-summary)
- [SGT. K. R. PORTER](#sgt-k-r-porter)
- [INTER-DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM](#inter-department-memorandum)
- [CITIZEN COMPLAINTS](#citizen-complaints)
- [REASONS FOR COMPLAINTS](#reasons-for-complaints)
- [THE MOST REQUESTED LOCATIONS](#the-most-requested-locations)
- [SPECUTC LOCATIONS](#specutc-locations)
- [SURVEY 1 REQUESTED POLICE PROTECTION](#survey-1-requested-police-protection)
- [4. Codes for Targeted Offenses:](#4-codes-for-targeted-offenses)
- [TACTICS IMPLEMENTED](#tactics-implemented)
- [THE SECOND SURVEY](#the-second-survey)
- [SECOND SURVEY](#second-survey)
- [SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 1](#second-survey-question-1)
- [SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 2](#second-survey-question-2)
- [SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 2](#second-survey-question-2)
- [SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 3](#second-survey-question-3)
- [SUMMARY](#summary)
- [CSU OFFICERS](#csu-officers)
## ANALYSIS
The survey was an idea implemented to get a view of the downtown area through the eyes of the citizens. The responses to the survey questions were as interesting as they were overwhelming. Eighty 80 survey sheets were passed out on 1-17-92 and within two weeks 140 sheets had been filled out and returned. I believe this $175 \%$ return on the survey sheets showed that the questions were relevant and important to the citizens being surveyed.- Their replies were as concise and pertinent as the survey.
When the information was evaluated, I was surprised to find that there were no property crime complaints. Also, there were no requests for the protection of any kind of property. The responding citizens indicated that their primary and almost sole concern was for their own personal safety. I believed this reflected in unnecessarily high threat level that the citizens felt they were living under.
The survey information indicated that this level of fear was not the results of actual violent encounters with criminals as there were none reported by anyone surveyed. The origin of this fear appeared to come from the large number of nonviolent, non-physical yet offensive encounters with what the public described as vagrant type people.
At the time of this survey there were a number of alcoholic, vagrant type people living and begging for money in area "B". The types of encounters that the public were actually exposed to and considered offensive were vagrant men verbally accosting women, begging for money, urinating in public, and drinking and littering in the parks and squares. These were the same complaints voiced by many tourists and shoppers, the public was clearly intimidated by these encounters.
## RESPONSE
Working Hours. Adjusted our working hours to match the requests of the citizens.
Locations Of Priority. The most requested locations were the parking areas and squares. Our officers were assigned a specific parking area in the morning, a specific park or square at lunch and again a specific parking area in the evening. The specific locations were changed as needed.
Targeted Offenses. On 2-12-92, all officers of the C.S.,U. Bike Patrol were issued a copy of the State and City Codes that pertained to our targeted crimes.
Field Interview Forms. Field Interview Forms were completed on all suspects arrested in Area "B". If a suspect was arrested for a targeted crime, the Field Interview Form was copied, a photograph was attached and it was placed in a binder that is kept with the Crime Suppression Unit for future reference and identification.
# ASSESSMENT
On September 1, 1992 I started a.second survey in Area "B" of Precinct One. This survey showed the effectiveness of the tactics that were implemented by the Crime Suppression Unit.
The response to the second survey was even more overwhelming than the first. Only forty survey sheets were passed out in the same locations the first survey was conducted, yet over 190 sheets had been copied, filled out and returned. This is almost a $500 \%$ return on the survey sheets. I believe that this response shows the importance and relevancy of the survey topics. When the second survey information was evaluated, the results were positive.
The second survey showed that approximately $78 \%$ of the citizens surveyed noticed a decrease in the targeted crimes. By changing our hours and working locations, $84 \%$ of the citizens surveyed said they had seen more police in the past six months, this was accomplished with the same number of officers. Most important, we are no longer receiving complaints form the public about not "feeling safe."
## SUMMARY
Prior to the survey that was started on January 17, 1992, the Crime Suppression Unit had been targeting the crimes and offenses that the police and the Police Department had determined were of highest priority. Even though the Crime Suppression Officers were quite effective in handling these offenses, the citizens were still making many complaints about no "feeling safe" in the downtown area.
The survey was an idea implemented to get a view of the downtown area through the eyes of the citizens. It was also an opportunity to find out what the Crime Suppression Bike Unit could do to make the citizens feel better about being downtown.
The information gathered from this first survey was surprising. It was a request
for the enforcement of what most police officers considered small and insignificant crimes. These crimes were misdemeanors, however, these were the crimes that the citizens were exposed to most often.
The citizens made it very clear that what they wanted was "more visibility!" For this, the Bike Unit was what they preferred. They made many comments about the officers on the bikes being more visible and more approachable. With this information, our tactics were developed and implemented.
The second survey showed that they were right on target. As a result, the majority of the citizens noticed a decrease in the offensive activities that were of so much concern to them. All this was done by the officers of the Crime Suppression Unit, without losing control of the part one crimes!
C.S.U. Officers
Sgt. K. Porter
CpL M. Bednarz
Cpl. D. Bryant
Cpl. C. Cortes
Cpl. K, Howard
Cpi. W. Woodward
REQUEST TO OPEN P.O.P. FILE
ORIGIN: [X] OFFICER [ ] CAPTAIN [ ] LIEUTENANT [ ] SERGEANT DATE 17 Jan 1992
DATE OF ORIGIN: 17 JAN 1992 OFFICER: CPL. W. S. WOODWARD
DATE OF ASSIGNMENT: 17 JANUARY 1992
PRECINCT: 1 [X] 5 [ ] SPEC OPS UNIT
2 [ ] 6 [ ] CIB UNIT
3 [ ] 7 [ ] OTHER UNIT
SERVICE
AREA: B PROBLEM PANDERING AND BEGGING
LOCATION: PARKS AND SQUARES
PARKING GARAGES AREA B
PROBLEM
DESCRIPTION: PANDERING AND BEGGING
WHEN PROBLEM
OCCURS: 0700 A.M. UNTIL 1900 P.M.
PEAK TIMES: 1200-1300 AND 1700-1800
OTHER COMMENTS
RELEVANT TO
PROBLEM: Citizens downtown perceive this to be the number one problem that they
would like addressed by the police.
APPROVAL ROUTING:
SERGEANT: K. R. Porter DATE: 1/17/92
LIEUTENANT: H. A. Ragan DATE: 1/17/92
CAPTAIN: R. M. Bashlor DATE: 1/17/92
PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION NUMBER 9 2 0 1
YEAR MONTH PRECINCT PROJECT NO.
COPY TO:
ORIGINATING UNIT
MANAGEMENT SERVICES BUREAU COMMANDER
REQUESTING OFFICER'S BUREAU COMMANDER
# POP TRACKING FORM
ASSIGNED OFFICER(S): All C.S.U. Officers
PRECINCT/SERVICE AREA: Area B - Precinct I
PROBLEM LOCATION: Parks and Squares
PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION NUMBER: 92-01-1-01
PROBLEM SOLVING PROCESS:
SARA* DATE BEGAN DATE COMPLETED SUPERVISOR
SCANNING $\quad 01-17-92 \quad 02-01-92 \quad$ K. R. Porter
ANALYSIS $\quad 02-01-92 \quad 02-10-92 \quad$ K. R. Porter
RESPONSE $\quad 02-13-92 \quad$ On-Going K. R. Porter
ASSESSMENT
COMMENTS: This is an on-going problem. However, we will re-survey in Auguts to get more citizen input.
SCANNING: Identifying the problem
ANALYSIS: Determining the problem's causes, scope, and effects
RESPONSE: Acting to alleviate the problem
ASSESSMENT: Determining whether and to what extent the response worked
# POP DATA SHEET
**PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION NUMBER** 92-01-1-01
**LOCATION** Service Area B - Precinct I
**TYPE OF PROBLEM** Pandering and Begging
**TYPE OF STRUCTURE, LOT, ETC.,** Parks, Squares, Parking Garages
## CITY AGENCIES CONTACTED
| | N/A | WORKING | FINISHED | CONTACT PERSON/PHONE NO. |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| BUILDING INSPECTOR | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| BUILDING PERMIT | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| CITY ATTORNEY | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| FIRE MARSHALL | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| SANITATION/CITY LOT | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| CITY MARSHALL/S/REVENUE | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
| PARK AND TREE | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ | |
## COUNTY AGENCIES CONTACTED
| District Attorney's Office | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Metro Drug Squad | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Animal Control | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Youth Detention Center | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Chatham County Sheriff's Office | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
## STATE AGENCIES CONTACTED
| Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Department of Family and Children | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Georgia Bureau of Investigation | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Georgia Internal Revenue Service | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
## FEDERAL AGENCIES CONTACTED
| Drug Enforcement Administration | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Federal Bureau of Investigation | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| U.S. Customs | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| Internal Revenue Service | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
## OTHER ACTION TAKEN
| Criminal History | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LD. Requested | ☑ | ☐ | ☐ |
**Miscellaneous** Judge Drew and Judge Dillon agreed to work with us concerning the problem.
**Violations**
# OFFICER'S LOG
| DATE/TIME | COMMENTS | SUPERVISOR'S SIGNATURE |
| :--: | :--: | :--: |
| 01-12-92 | Adjusted work hours from 0700 hours until 1900 hours for longer | |
| | coverage in Area B to better address the problem of pandering and begging. | |
| 02-13-92 | Conducted sting operation in Area B resulting in two arrests. | |
| 04-29-92 | Conducted sting operation in Area B resulting in three arrests. | |
| 05-07-92 | Conducted sting operation in Area B resulting in one arrest. | |
| 06-19-92 | Conducted sting operation in Area B resulting in two arrests. | |
| 07-23-92 | Conducted sting operation in Area B resulting in eight arrests. | |
| $\begin{aligned} & 08 / 18- \\ & 22 / 92 \end{aligned}$ | Conducted sting operation in Area B resulting in ten arrests. | |
| 09-01-92 | Re-surveyed to better analyze success of operations after six months. | |
| 12-01-92 | Survey has been analyzed by Cpl. Woodward, results attached. | |
| | | |
| | | |
| | | |
# NARRATIVE SUMMARY
This is, and has been a problem in Area B; however, we feel that with adjusted hours of assignment and constant pressure on panderers in Area B, we will see a decline in this problem.
08/25/92 - We continue to address this problem through a " 0 " tolerance attitude as well as constant pressure on beggars in Area B.
09-01-92 - Cpl. Woodward re-surveyed the original area.
12-2-92 - Cpl. Woodward has collected and analyzed surveys, results are attached and were very positive. While this P.O.P. will never close, we have made a significant impact, and are now in the maintenance stage of the project.
## SGT. K. R. PORTER
# INTER-DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM
DATE: October 30, 1992
TO: Maj. Lyght thru chain of Command
PROM: Cpl. W. S. Woodward
SUBJECT: Community Oriented Policing Project
REFERENCE: Bike Survey
On January 17, 1992 I started a survey in area "B" of Precinct one. This is the assigned area of the Bicycle Patrol Unit.
The purpose of this survey was to find the citizens opinions on the following questions.
1. How can the Savannah Police Department's Bike Unit better serve you?
2. What hours of the day would you most like the Bike Unit to be available to you?
3. What locations would you like to see the Bike Unit patrol more often, if any, and at what time of the day?
The responses to these questions were as interesting as they were overwhelming. Eighty ( 80 ) survey sheets were passed out on 1-17-92 and within two weeks 140 sheets had been filled out and returned. I believe this ( $175 \%$ ) return on the survey sheets showed that the questions were relevant and important to the citizens being surveyed. Their replies were as concise and pertinent as the survey.
When the information was evaluated I was surprised to find that there were no property crime complaints. Also, there were no requests for the protection of any kind of property. The responding citizens indicated that their primary and almost sole concern was for their own personal safety. I believed this reflected an unnecessarily high threat level that the citizens felt they were living under.
The survey information indicated that this level of fear was not the results of actual violent encounters with criminals as there were none reported by anyone surveyed. The origin of this fear appeared to come from a large number of non-violent, nonphysical yet offensive encounters with what the public described as vagrant type people.
At the time of this survey there were a number of alcoholic, vagrant type people living and begging for money in area "B". The types of encounters that the public were actually exposed to and considered offensive were vagrant men verbally accosting women, begging for money, urinating in public, and drinking and littering in the parks and squares. These were the same complaints voiced by many tourists and shoppers. The public was clearly intimidated by these encounters.
The following pages will show the information gathered from the first survey and will be followed by a report on the second survey. The end report will show the results of our efforts to combat the above complaints.
# CITIZEN COMPLAINTS
1. Vagrants in the Downtown area.
2. Loitering men in the parks and squares that verbally assault women.
3. Citizens feel the Soup Kitchen at Abercorn Street and Bryan Street is responsible for the vagrants being in the Downtown area.
4. Local citizens and tourists complain of being approached by panhandlers.
5. Drinking, littering and urinating in the parks and squares.
## REASONS FOR COMPLAINTS
1. Soup Kitchen.
2. Large amount of foot traffic that is conducive to panhandling.
3. The night shelters located near the downtown area.
4. Franklin Square being used as a place to drink and pick up temporary employment.
5. Vagrants living on the streets in the downtown area.
## THE MOST REQUESTED LOCATIONS
1.' About $90 \%$ of the citizens requested two general locations:
1. Parking areas; Downtown.
2. Squares; Downtown
## SPECUTC LOCATIONS
The following locations are PRIORITIZED by request.
1. Reynolds Square
2. City Market
3. Johnson Square
4. River Street
5. Bay Street
6. Wright Square
# SURVEY 1 REQUESTED POLICE PROTECTION
Requested hours
RECOMMENDATIONS THAT MAY REDUCE CITIZENS COMPLAINTS
1. Working-Hours. The information gathered showed that the peak requested hours for police visibility and protection were 0800- 0930, lunch time from 1100- 1400 and 1630- 1800. With this information, Sgt. Porter has determined that the most efficient way to cover this ten hour time span with his given resources is to divide the Bike Unit into two shifts. The first shift of two Bike Officers would work from 0800 to 1600. The second shift of three Bike officers would work from 1100 to 19 00. Sgt. Porter has implemented this shift change and the citizens response has been positive.
2. Expand the Bike tInit. The Bike Unit was originally conceived and formed as a ten Officer Unit. This unit has since been reduced to a five Officer, one Sergeant unit. The Bike Unit Has demonstrated its effectiveness since being placed in its current boundaries. However this unit could benefit from the addition of at least one more Officer. This additional Officer would enable the Bike Unit to dispatch three Bike Officers to cover the 0800- 1600 shift and three Bike officers to work the 1100- 1900 shift. This would free the Sergeant to work what hours he deemed necessary. Also, this would leave at least two Officers per shift if one Officer was out. With this needed Officer, the three morning and evening priority locations could be covered.
3. Locations of Priority. The following locations were the most requested by the citizens.
A. Morning: The most requested morning locations.
1. Parking garage at Congress St. & Drayton St.
2. Parking garage at Congress St. & Lincon St.
3. City Market parking garage.
Time: 0800- 0930
B. Noon: The most requested noon locations.
1. Reynolds Square
2. Johnson Square
3. Wright Square
Time: 1100- 1400
C. Evening: The most requested evening locations.
1. Parking garage at Congress St. \& Drayton St.
2. Parking garage at Congress St . \& Lincon St.
3. City Market parking garage.
Time: $1630-1800$
# 4. Codes for Targeted Offenses:
A. 4- 1007 No person shall use the street, sidewalk, lanes or squares for private purpose of any sort.
B. 4- 2023 Paper, garbage, cardboard and wooden boxes and cans shall not be dumped, dropped, deposited, placed, cast or thrown on the streets, lanes, sidewalks,, grass plats, squares and parks of the city.
C. 9- 1001 It shall be unlawful to solicit or beg on city streets, place of business, or house.
D. 9-1002 Disorderly conduct. i '
(E) Accost or force his company on a female or attempt to pick up any female.
(G) Defecate or urinate on the streets, parks, lanes, etc.
E. 9-2008 Unlawful to bathe, swim, etc., in any fountains in city parks, etc..
F. 9- 1218 Consumption of alcohol on city streets prohibited.
(A) Glass; bottle, or can prohibited on streets, sidewalks, etc..
# TACTICS IMPLEMENTED
In order to effectively deal with the above complaints, many of the preliminary survey recommendations were implemented along with other innovative ideas from all Bicycle Patrol Officers on C.S.U.
1. Working hours: On 2-12-92, Sgt.K.R.Porter adjusted our working hours to match the requests of the citizens. The adjusted hours were from 0800 to 1900 hours. The way this eleven hour time span was covered was by dividing the Bike Unit into two shifts. The first shift of two officers worked from 0800 to 1900 hours. The second shift of five officers worked from 1100 to 1900 hours. These two shifts were able to cover all the peak hours requested by the citizens. This coverage was noticed by the citizens and many supportive comments were made.
2. Locations of priority: The most requested locations were the parking areas and squares. Our Officers were assigned a specific parking area in the morning, a specific park or square at lunch and again a specific parking area in the evening. The specific locations were changed as needed.
3. Targeted offenses: On 2-12-92, all officers of the C.S.U. Bike Patrol were issued a copy of the State and City codes that pertained to our targeted crimes.
Sgt.K.R.Porter contacted the Recorders Court Judges of Chatham Co. for their approval and support in prosecuting these cases.
All C.S.U. Officers then showed a zero tolerance attitude towards these crimes.
4.Sting operations: On 2-13-92, this unit started conducting sting operations in Area "B". These operations were carried out by plain clothes officers posing as tourists and business people. This helped us to locate our targeted violators. Female officers in plain clothes were used to locate the violators that were verbally accosting women in Area "B". When a suspect was located he was arrested, photographed and charged accordingly.
2-13-92 Conducted a Sting Operation in Area "B" resulting in two arrests.
4-29-92 Conducted a Sting Operation in Area "B" resulting in three arrests.
5-07-92 Conducted a Sting Operation in Area "B" resulting in one arrest.
6-19-92 Conducted a Sting Operation in Area "B" resulting in two arrests.
7-23-92 Conducted a Sting Operation in Area "B" resulting in eight arrests.
8-18-92 Conducted a Sting Operation in Area "B" resulting in ten arrests.
By 8-18-92 a total of twenty-six targeted arrests had been made through the Sting Operations alone.
5.Field Interview Forms : Field Interview Forms were completed on all suspects arrested in Area "B". If a suspect was arrested for a targeted crime, the Field Interview Form was copied, a photograph was attached and it was placed in a binder that is kept with the Crime Suppression Unit for future reference and identification.
# THE SECOND SURVEY
The following pages will show the results of the second survey. These results should also be a reflection of the effectiveness of the tactics that were implemented by the Crime Suppression Unit.
# SECOND SURVEY
On September 1, 1992 I started a second survey in Area "B" of precinct one. This is the assigned area of the C.S.U. Bike Patrol Unit.
The purpose of this survey was to find the citizens opinions on the following questions.
1. In the past six months have you noticed more or less panhandling?
2. Would you like to see more of the Bike Unit.
A. If so, what hours?
B. If so where?
3. In the last six months, have you seen more or less of the Police?
4. How can the Savannah Police Department's Bike Unit better serve you?
The response to the second survey was even more overwhelming than the first. Only forty survey sheets were passed out in the same locations the first survey was conducted, yet over 190 sheets had been copied, filled out and returned. This is almost a (500\%) return on the survey sheets. I believe that this response shows the importance and relevancy of the survey topics. The following pages will show that when the second survey information was evaluated, the results were positive.
# SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 1
In the past six months have you noticed more or less panhandling?
# SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 2
Would you like to see more of the Bike unit?
# SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 2
Would you like to see more of the Bike Unit?
If so, what hours?
# SECOND SURVEY QUESTION 3
In the last six months, have you seen more or less of the police?
# SUMMARY
Prior to the survey that was started on January 17, 1992, the Crime Suppression Unit had been targeting the crimes and offenses that the police and the Police Department had determined were of highest priority. Even though the Crime Suppression Officers were quite effective in handling these offenses, the citizens were still making many complaints about not "feeling safe" in the downtown area.
The survey was an idea implemented to get a view of the downtown area through the eyes of the citizens. It was also an opportunity to find out what the Crime Suppression Bike Unit could do to make the citizens feel better about being downtown.
The information gathered from this first survey was surprising. It was a request for the enforcement of what most police officers considered small and insignificant crimes. These crimes were misdemeanors, however, these were the crimes that the citizens were exposed to most often.
The citizens made it very clear that-what they wanted was "More visibility"! For this, the Bike Unit was what they preferred. They made many comments about the Officers on the bikes being more visible and more approachable. With this information, our tactics were developed and implemented.
The second survey showed that they were right on target. As a result, the majority of the citizens noticed a decrease in the offensive activities that were of so much concern to them. All this was done by the officers of the Crime Suppression Unit, without losing control of the part one crimes!
## CSU OFFICERS
Sgt. PorterCpl. BednarzCpl. BryantCpl. CortesCpl. HowardCpl. Woodward