Del Paso business leader resigns from post, citing PD's lack of responsiveness
SACRAMENTO - Fed up with crime and the police department's response, a local business leader is saying "no more."
The chairman of the Del Paso Partnership resigned Tuesday afternoon to send a message to the city of Sacramento and called on all board members to resign, too.
The move comes two weeks after a shooting outside a liquor store on Del Paso Boulevard at the corner of Fairfield Street. Two children were injured: a bullet grazed the one-year-old victim's head.
Business owners report nightly break-ins as recent as this weekend.
The former chair of the partnership said his building and the one next door had $100,000 of stolen goods and damage, and he says, Sacramento police didn't come quick enough. That was the final straw.
"Sacramento is not providing a minimal level of public safety for the business and property owners. We're such a low priority, they're not responding," said Howie Ditkof, former chairman of the Del Paso Partnership. "The problem is the city's not providing a basic level of service. So the PBID's efforts are totally wasting, because they aren't the police, they don't have police powers, and at 3 o'clock in the morning, the police should be responding."
We sent the letter to the Sacramento Police Department for an explanation.
A spokesperson told us the business owners have every right to be upset over the property crimes and that the department receives more calls for service than there are officers to respond. They will continue to work with local business communities to solve problems.
Read the full statement from the Sacramento Police Department, below:
The Sacramento Police Department recognizes the harmful impact property crimes, such as burglaries, have on our business community that owners and employees work so hard to build. Our businesses have every right to be upset over their occurrence. Our department utilizes a call priority system when responding to requests for police assistance, including alarm calls. Most of the time, our department receives more calls for service than officers available to respond. At times, the high volume causes unfortunate delays in officer response times. The men and women of the Sacramento Police Department work tirelessly to answer those service calls as quickly and safely as possible. Moreover, in recent weeks, we have increased our patrols in our business districts along Del Paso Boulevard, and our north problem-oriented policing team is investing considerable time in working with our business community. Moving forward, we will continue evaluating our response strategies and working with our business communities to protect life and property while solving problems.