Insight May 06 1998 p 3 |
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_> J J _^ _J _y- tr the incident. The jewelry store sits just across the the "Henry and Ida" area of Fresno. M I486 Mill photo by Amy Kloss photo by Amy Kloss Sex, drugs and hot pursuits sprinkle the life of a Fresno woman who echoes the criminal traits thafthe'eity of Fresno experiences everyday. Downtown already epitomizes the big city sins that terrify people. By Cherie N. Arambel eila Scoleri, 28 of Fresno, is an ex-con vict. She spent the I last 10 years of her life in-and-out of prison. Scoleri was convicted repeatedly because of crimes relating to drugs, robbery and assault. Some would say the way she was raised made her a criminal. "My mom and dad did drugs like heroin an marijuana," Scoleri said. "When I was in elementary school, I helped my grandmother sell drugs to kids I went to school with." Like Scoleri, the city of Fresno has a problem eradicating crime. Although the city reported a 14 percent decrease in crime last year, Fresno's ranking nationally only changes slightly from year to year. If Fresno's amount of crime is decreasing, so true is the fact that crime is decreasing everywhere in the nation. Fresno remains on the list of crime capitals in the United States. In 1996, the most recent year calculated, Fresno ranked thirty-third out of 67 cities with more than 20.000 serious crimes committed. There were 42,801 crimes indexed that year in Fresno. In comparison, San Jose, with more than 800,000 residents and more than 34,000 crimes committed, ranked fortieth. That is a population two times larger ' than Fresno's. Statewide, in 1996, Fresno ranked fourth above Long Beach, Oakland, Sacramento and San Jose. Ten years ago, Fresno's national ranking was even lower. In 1986, Fresno was ranked forty-fourth in the nation. Dr. Erik Hickey, a professor of criminology at Fresno State, said education, immigration, poverty, family life, employment and social status influence crime. All of Hickey's factors apply to Fresno's current situation. Children aren't attending school. More immigrants are coming to the Valley everyday. Economic and employment problems abound. The number of children being raised in single-parent homes, or unstable situations, is staggering. These factors prove especially true in certain parts of Fresno. One of the worst parts of Fresno are bounded by Blackstone and Belmont Avenues and Fresno and Divisadero Streets. The police call it "Henry and Ida" for short. In this area, there were more than 5,000 calls made to police and more than 1,400 crime reports in 1996. That is more than 13 calls and more than three reports made-out per day. Police Capt. Tom Frost, whose central precinct patrols "Henry and Ida," said abandoned homes and vacant lots are plentiful in this area and provide hiding spots for criminals. Frost said drug abuse and prostitution are widespread as well. "We have a lot of homicides there," Frost said. "The reason being is usually centered around gangs, drugs or prostitution." Economics and societal instability underlie many of the problems in "Henry and Ida," like poverty and employment. "When you have a blighted area to begin with," Frost said, "it's hard to come back from such hard times." Frost said one also must consider the number of people moving in and out of "Henry and Ida." "The turnaround rate in this area is unbelievable," Frost said. "A lot of people are farm laborers that can't afford anything better." Frost said that 60 percent of the children attending school in this area aren't climbing up the educational ladder to another grade in school. Hickey said this is where problems can surface. Hickey believes without a solid background in education and economic stability, people become frustrated with their place in the world. They can't meet their goals. Sometimes people do something to change their situation, but, most of them use anger and violence as an escape, Hickey added. Hickey said another factor behind When I was in elementary school, helped my grandmother sell drugs to kids I went school with. LEILA SCOLERI crime in Fresno is that the area is a melting pot. There are several different races, cultures and languages spoken in the area. Hickey said this will continue, but fresno is not handling the influx of people coming to the city well. "The number of races in this area is growing and growing," Hickey said. "But as a melting pot, Fresno is not melting well." Hickey said because of the melting pot, people become disenfranchised. Lots of people come to Fresno for employment, and when they can't get any, they become frustrated. This can lead to violent actions. In addition, where a person lives has something to do with whether or not a person becomes a victim, or gets involved in violent crimes, Hickey said. "There were only two homicides north of Shaw avenue in 1996," Hickey said. "So if you live anywhere south of there, or in downtown, you might be asking to become a victim, or a criminal." Prime cases: Leila and Karen The story of Leila Scoleri and Karen, who wished to divulge only her first name, is similar in almost all respects. It is also similar to the story of Fresno's crime problems. Karen is a repeat offender. The problems that Fresno has were in her backyard, growing up. As she sat in a Denny's restaurant, sipping on a cold drink, Karen told her story of abuse, drugs and prison that will follow her for the rest of her life. When Karen was a baby, she was given beer in her bottle. As a young girl, she became addicted to drugs and alcohol because of her mom. Many an afternoon were spent shooting up drugs with her brothers and sisters. Karen, who lives at the YWCA in Fresno, said she was brought into the world under false pretenses. Her father didn't want to be married to her mother. "I am what people call a 'trick baby,'" Karen said. "I was conceived so that my father would stick around." But her father eventually left and Karen was the scapegoat. When Karen's mom thought about / her father, her mom would take her aggressions out on Karen. When she turned to drugs as a break from reality. Karen would do anything to get those drugs. Prostitution and robbery aren't . new ideas to her. tO "I would sell myself just so 1 could get high," Karen said. "The funny thing is a person has to be high to sell themselves. There's no way you can do that |prostitute| and be sober." When Karen was arrested and sent to prison for robbery, the first and second time, she swore that time would be the last. "As soon as I got out of prison, there would be my brother or sister and they would say, "Let's go get high,'" Karen said. After her third prison term, Karen had enough. Enough of the drugs, the prostitution and the running. She doesn't Insight Special 3 May 6,1998
Object Description
Title | 1998_05 Insight May 1998 |
Alternative Title | Insight (California State University, Fresno) |
Publisher | Dept. of Journalism, California State University, Fresno. |
Publication Date | 1998 |
Description | Weekly during the school year. Vol. 1, no. 1 (Oct. 8, 1969)-v. 29, no. 23 (May 13, 1998). Ceased with May 13, 1998, issue. Title from masthead. Merged with Daily collegian. |
Subject | California State University, Fresno Periodicals |
Contributors | California State University, Fresno Dept. of Journalism |
Coverage | October 8, 1969 – May 13, 1998 |
Format | Microfilm reels, 35mm |
Technical Information | Scanned at 600 dpi; TIFF; Microfilm ScanPro 2000 “E-image data” |
Language | eng |
Description
Title | Insight May 06 1998 p 3 |
Alternative Title | Insight (California State University, Fresno) |
Publication Date | 1998 |
Full-Text-Search | _> J J _^ _J _y- tr the incident. The jewelry store sits just across the the "Henry and Ida" area of Fresno. M I486 Mill photo by Amy Kloss photo by Amy Kloss Sex, drugs and hot pursuits sprinkle the life of a Fresno woman who echoes the criminal traits thafthe'eity of Fresno experiences everyday. Downtown already epitomizes the big city sins that terrify people. By Cherie N. Arambel eila Scoleri, 28 of Fresno, is an ex-con vict. She spent the I last 10 years of her life in-and-out of prison. Scoleri was convicted repeatedly because of crimes relating to drugs, robbery and assault. Some would say the way she was raised made her a criminal. "My mom and dad did drugs like heroin an marijuana," Scoleri said. "When I was in elementary school, I helped my grandmother sell drugs to kids I went to school with." Like Scoleri, the city of Fresno has a problem eradicating crime. Although the city reported a 14 percent decrease in crime last year, Fresno's ranking nationally only changes slightly from year to year. If Fresno's amount of crime is decreasing, so true is the fact that crime is decreasing everywhere in the nation. Fresno remains on the list of crime capitals in the United States. In 1996, the most recent year calculated, Fresno ranked thirty-third out of 67 cities with more than 20.000 serious crimes committed. There were 42,801 crimes indexed that year in Fresno. In comparison, San Jose, with more than 800,000 residents and more than 34,000 crimes committed, ranked fortieth. That is a population two times larger ' than Fresno's. Statewide, in 1996, Fresno ranked fourth above Long Beach, Oakland, Sacramento and San Jose. Ten years ago, Fresno's national ranking was even lower. In 1986, Fresno was ranked forty-fourth in the nation. Dr. Erik Hickey, a professor of criminology at Fresno State, said education, immigration, poverty, family life, employment and social status influence crime. All of Hickey's factors apply to Fresno's current situation. Children aren't attending school. More immigrants are coming to the Valley everyday. Economic and employment problems abound. The number of children being raised in single-parent homes, or unstable situations, is staggering. These factors prove especially true in certain parts of Fresno. One of the worst parts of Fresno are bounded by Blackstone and Belmont Avenues and Fresno and Divisadero Streets. The police call it "Henry and Ida" for short. In this area, there were more than 5,000 calls made to police and more than 1,400 crime reports in 1996. That is more than 13 calls and more than three reports made-out per day. Police Capt. Tom Frost, whose central precinct patrols "Henry and Ida," said abandoned homes and vacant lots are plentiful in this area and provide hiding spots for criminals. Frost said drug abuse and prostitution are widespread as well. "We have a lot of homicides there," Frost said. "The reason being is usually centered around gangs, drugs or prostitution." Economics and societal instability underlie many of the problems in "Henry and Ida," like poverty and employment. "When you have a blighted area to begin with," Frost said, "it's hard to come back from such hard times." Frost said one also must consider the number of people moving in and out of "Henry and Ida." "The turnaround rate in this area is unbelievable," Frost said. "A lot of people are farm laborers that can't afford anything better." Frost said that 60 percent of the children attending school in this area aren't climbing up the educational ladder to another grade in school. Hickey said this is where problems can surface. Hickey believes without a solid background in education and economic stability, people become frustrated with their place in the world. They can't meet their goals. Sometimes people do something to change their situation, but, most of them use anger and violence as an escape, Hickey added. Hickey said another factor behind When I was in elementary school, helped my grandmother sell drugs to kids I went school with. LEILA SCOLERI crime in Fresno is that the area is a melting pot. There are several different races, cultures and languages spoken in the area. Hickey said this will continue, but fresno is not handling the influx of people coming to the city well. "The number of races in this area is growing and growing," Hickey said. "But as a melting pot, Fresno is not melting well." Hickey said because of the melting pot, people become disenfranchised. Lots of people come to Fresno for employment, and when they can't get any, they become frustrated. This can lead to violent actions. In addition, where a person lives has something to do with whether or not a person becomes a victim, or gets involved in violent crimes, Hickey said. "There were only two homicides north of Shaw avenue in 1996," Hickey said. "So if you live anywhere south of there, or in downtown, you might be asking to become a victim, or a criminal." Prime cases: Leila and Karen The story of Leila Scoleri and Karen, who wished to divulge only her first name, is similar in almost all respects. It is also similar to the story of Fresno's crime problems. Karen is a repeat offender. The problems that Fresno has were in her backyard, growing up. As she sat in a Denny's restaurant, sipping on a cold drink, Karen told her story of abuse, drugs and prison that will follow her for the rest of her life. When Karen was a baby, she was given beer in her bottle. As a young girl, she became addicted to drugs and alcohol because of her mom. Many an afternoon were spent shooting up drugs with her brothers and sisters. Karen, who lives at the YWCA in Fresno, said she was brought into the world under false pretenses. Her father didn't want to be married to her mother. "I am what people call a 'trick baby,'" Karen said. "I was conceived so that my father would stick around." But her father eventually left and Karen was the scapegoat. When Karen's mom thought about / her father, her mom would take her aggressions out on Karen. When she turned to drugs as a break from reality. Karen would do anything to get those drugs. Prostitution and robbery aren't . new ideas to her. tO "I would sell myself just so 1 could get high," Karen said. "The funny thing is a person has to be high to sell themselves. There's no way you can do that |prostitute| and be sober." When Karen was arrested and sent to prison for robbery, the first and second time, she swore that time would be the last. "As soon as I got out of prison, there would be my brother or sister and they would say, "Let's go get high,'" Karen said. After her third prison term, Karen had enough. Enough of the drugs, the prostitution and the running. She doesn't Insight Special 3 May 6,1998 |