<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" ><tr><td valign="top" style="font: inherit;"><BR><BR>--- On <B>Tue, 8/4/09, Mary Jo Wisniewski <I><jowiz@sbcglobal.net></I></B> wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid"><BR>From: Mary Jo Wisniewski <jowiz@sbcglobal.net><BR>Subject: Fw: Re: [Dewey-Darrow] Court Hearing for Crain Breakins (Gordon Darnell Watt)<BR>To: Florence-crain-neighbors@googlegroups.com<BR>Date: Tuesday, August 4, 2009, 11:18 PM<BR><BR>
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<TD vAlign=top><BR><BR>--- On <B>Tue, 8/4/09, Mary Jo Wisniewski <I><jowiz@sbcglobal.net></I></B> wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid"><BR>From: Mary Jo Wisniewski <jowiz@sbcglobal.net><BR>Subject: Re: [Dewey-Darrow] Court Hearing for Crain Breakins (Gordon Darnell Watt)<BR>To: "Bearhair" <bearhair@spamcop.net><BR>Date: Tuesday, August 4, 2009, 11:16 PM<BR><BR>
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<TD vAlign=top>Well said Lora. I would have hoped that all would give us all a little credit. We've been here before, and are well informed of the system and how it works. We also have very intimate information as to this situation as we are one of the victims We are aware and well informed as to what a good showing can do for outcomes. hopefully all of this will help others as well. We can only see. Mary Jo Wisniewski<BR><BR>--- On <B>Tue, 8/4/09, Bearhair <I><bearhair@spamcop.net></I></B> wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid"><BR>From: Bearhair <bearhair@spamcop.net><BR>Subject: Re: [Dewey-Darrow] Court Hearing for Crain Breakins (Gordon Darnell Watt)<BR>To: nicholsneighbors@yahoogroups.com, "West Crown Park Neighbors" <west-crown-park-neighbors@googlegroups.com>, "Florence-Crain Neighbors - Evanston, IL" <florence-crain-neighbors@googlegroups.com>, "asbury dodge" <asbury-dodge-neighborhood-group@googlegroups.com>, "Dewey-Darrow Neighbors" <dewey-darrow@lists.pickacup.com>, ridge-ct-neighbors@googlegroups.com<BR>Date: Tuesday, August 4, 2009, 10:31 PM<BR><BR>
<DIV class=plainMail>In response to my email encouraging neighbors to attend the court proceedings<BR>of the man recently arrested for burglary and possession of burglary tools,<BR>two neighbors responded on the Nichols Neighbors email list with their<BR>concerns. In case others have the same concerns, I'm copying their comments<BR>and my response to other nearby neighborhood email lists as well.<BR><BR>Paul Whittaker of Nichols Neighbors wrote:<BR><BR>>I have no firsthand information about this situation and Mr. Watts is innocent until proven guilty.<BR><BR>Joan Batlle of Nichols Neighbors wrote:<BR><BR>>I have to agree with Mr. Whittaker. I think the homeowners directly <BR>>affected by the crimes should be encouraged to attend if they want <BR>>to. The whole neighborhood being invited and encouraged to show up <BR>>sounds a little like prejudgement and overinvolvement in the justice
<BR>>process. It makes me uncomfortable too. Our neighborhood is still a <BR>>very safe one on the whole, but this incident should teach us not to <BR>>take it for granted. I for one, have lectured my kids for years about <BR>>the importance of locking all the doors on our home at all times. <BR>>However, the fact that our neighbors, two doors down, were victims of <BR>>a breakin last month has finally made them believers!<BR><BR>Nichols School is only 7 blocks from the area where, over the past 3 years,<BR>has been the target of a home invasion with sexual assault, a<BR>drug/gang-related murder, a drug-related shooting spree between two speeding<BR>cars down Greenleaf in the middle of the day, and in the last month, at least<BR>2 home burglaries, a garage burglary, and two attempted burglaries, one a<BR>backyard shed and the other a home. I wonder if your neighbor's
victimization<BR>isn't part of the same recent burglary activity.<BR><BR>Our judicial system is open to the public in part to ensure the fairness to<BR>the defendant. Attendance by the neighbors of crime victims will in no way<BR>affect the outcome of a trial. It may, however, affect the speediness of the<BR>trial and the sentencing. The suspect in the garage burglary & attempted shed<BR>burglary, Mr. Watt, is currently being tried for a similar offense in another<BR>suburb, for which he was arrested 2 years ago. From what I have been told by<BR>police detectives, little progress has been made in that trial.<BR><BR>We have a vested interest in the quick culmination of Mr. Watt's trial for<BR>this arrest, since if he is NOT guilty, we need the police to be aware that<BR>the burglar remains free. If he IS found guilty, we want the judge to<BR>understand that sentencing a repeat offender to the minimum possible term is<BR>not an acceptable action,
given that he has shown a pattern of returning to<BR>the same community to engage in criminal activity. As clarification, the<BR>police detectives told me that he has a significant criminal history (and<BR>that his initial bail on this arrest was set too low). I have been told by<BR>others that his criminal record included the burglary of the property<BR>adjacent to mine, for which he was tried and sentenced to two years in jail.<BR>He was, of course, released much sooner on probation.<BR><BR>Your degree of involvement in your neighborhood or larger community is, of<BR>course, a personal choice. However, the aldermen and police have both<BR>encouraged those of us in attendance at ward and neighborhood meetings to<BR>become actively involved in joining together to combat crime, from keeping an<BR>eye out for suspicious activity and circumstances, to phoning 911 immediately<BR>instead of the next day after observing something that didn't seem
quite<BR>right, to forming official or unofficial Neighborhood Watch groups, and<BR>lastly, to becoming visibly involved and interested in ensuring that those<BR>arrested are brought to justice. This includes being willing to serve as<BR>witnesses or complainants so that a criminal case may be successfully tried.<BR><BR>I hope this helps you to better understand the reasons for my initial email.<BR><BR>Best regards,<BR><BR>Lora<BR>_______________________________________________<BR>Dewey-darrow mailing list<BR><A href="http://us.mc817.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=Dewey-darrow@lists.dredel.com" target=_blank rel=nofollow>Dewey-darrow@lists.dredel.com</A><BR><A href="http://lists.dredel.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/dewey-darrow" target=_blank rel=nofollow>http://lists.dredel.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/dewey-darrow</A><BR></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></td></tr></table>