Mount Pleasant DC Forum

[Josh]

My wife and I will be moving into Mt. Pleasant from Kalorama in about a month and, reading the msg string, I am a little concerned that crime is much worse in this neighborhood than either Kalorama/Dupont or even Logan Circle. Muggings, theft from auto, and even violent crimes seem uncomfortably common here. Is this the case? Prior to reading this, I had heard nothing but good things about Mt. Pleasnat. Is crime rising? What are other people's experience?

[Tom]

It's worth remembering that this is a listing of crimes and concerns about crime, not general neighborhood news. We've lived in Mt. Pleasant since 1974. Our house has been broken into three times, but not since we installed an alarm system. Our car has been broken into once. We are concerned about reports of muggings and armed robberies, though haven't experienced it personally. Best advice is get to know your neighbors, have a home security system and anti-theft system for your car. And attend the PSA 410 community meetings 2nd Tuesday of the month to meet neighbors and the local police.

[John Boggan]

I moved into Mt. Pleasant from Dupont about a year ago. Neither neighbhorhood is crime-free (no neighborhood is!) but I don't get the impression that crime rates are higher in Mt. Pleasant than around Dupont. If anything, there seem to be fewer muggings and car break-ins.

To get more detailed crime info for ANY neighborhood, go to washingtpost.com, click on the "Real Estate" section, then go to "Crime Watch". You can type in the name of any street in any quadrant of the city and get a complete listing of (reported) crimes for the last 6 months, with location, date and brief description of each crime. This makes it very easy to compare crime rates between any two neighborhoods in the city.

[Tina]

We've been here for 2.5 years, and really like the neighborhood. We lived in Dupont for 6 years, and were mugged at knifepoint once -- right in front of our place. We did not own a car when we lived in Dupont, but friends who did experienced multiple break-ins. Virtually every friend living on Capitol Hill has been mugged. So far, we have not experienced any crime first hand here in MtP (knock on wood). Our house and car are alarmed and we are careful when out at night (as one should be anywhere in DC).

This website contributes to the close-knit, neighborhood-y feeling MtP has -- something Dupont lacked. While this thread can be alarming to read, and may give the impression that MtP is crawling with criminals, I view the numerous reports as a sign that my neighbors care and are looking out for one another. In other neighborhoods, you might not hear about as many incidents as are reported here, but that does not mean that things are not happening. I would rather be alarmed than ignorant. The fact that MPD reads and responds to posts here also gives me comfort.

Hope you learn to love MtP as much as the rest of us!

[Officer TK Mattingly]

Josh: Hello! As with any neighborhood one should always be on alert and use caution. Common sense is essential. The use of alarms (both car and home), a Dog (perhaps), good locks, getting to know your neighbors, attend Community Meetings, have the Police come out to place an id # on your major items, Keep your front and back lights ON at night - a well lit area is always a good deterrent as well as it assist any emergency person who is responding to your home to locate your house number. If walking at night - walk in a well lit area. These are just a few suggestions to deter crime and/or being a vitim. The bottom line is crime is everywhere and in every state throughout the US. What "we" need to focus on is how to prevent it from happening in our neighborhood. I hope this helps and if you have moved into the neighborhood - Welcome! I am here, if you have questions or concerns. If I do not know the answer I will certainly do my best to get it for you. Crime statstics are available from the Fourth District's Crime Analysis Office by calling 576-6745 or on the web WWW.Mpdc.org. Thanks. Ofc. Mattingly

[Dominic Sale]

I've only been the neighborhood for about 6 months now, but I have definitely noticed an increase in my feeling of uneasiness as of late. I know that it is partially attributed to the fact that it gets dark earlier in the winter, but I get a sense that that's not the whole story. When I first started reading the crime reports on this board, it was almost entirely made up of thefts from auto, which is somewhat preventable if you're not leaving stuff lying out in the open in your car. However, I have noticed a significant increase of reports of random violence involving guns, knives, etc. that I don't think can be brushed off as a seasonal anomaly.

I am not sure why this is happening, but what I am sure of, is that not enough is being done to prevent it, by the City or by the residents of our great neighborhood. A neighborhood that shows pride and respect for itself, as with a person who does the same, will be much less a victim of those who sense its vulnerabilities. You don't need to look much beyond the filthy garbage that is constantly accumulating on our streets to see that our neighborhood has little in the way of self-respect. Filth attracts filth, which is exactly what Giuliani knew when he literally and figuratively cleaned up New York City.

The really sad thing is that we are allowing ourselves to be victims because criminals can see that we don't care enough to stop them. I guarantee that a majority of crimes in our neighborhood are perpetrated by people who don't live among us. These are outsiders who see our messy streets, dimly lit sidewalks, and bustling population as a ticket to the perfect crime. How many people breaking into cars are actually being stopped? They're right in front of our houses, but we don't see them, or don't care enough to even look.

I for one am tired of the inferiority complex this neighborhood seems to have. It is NOT OK to have streets strewn with garbage. It is NOT OK that car break-ins are occuring on a nightly basis, right outside our homes. It is NOT OK that kids have to walk by drug addicts and broken booze bottles on their way to school every morning. And this is stuff we can all clean up with minimal effort.

We are not the public restroom for the rest of DC to foul. Don't litter and make sure your trash is in a container that will contain it. If you see a piece of garbage in the street, pick it up and throw it in one of the many trash cans in the neighborhood. Maybe someone will see you do it and start doing it himself. Call the cops if you see suspicious activity. Don't just accept the fact that crime is high here. Why do we accept the fact that we are going to be victims any more than someone in small-town USA? If you see someone littering, call the cops. If you see someone looking into cars in the streets, call the cops. If you see someone smoking pot at the bus stop next to the Metro (yes it's true, I've seen it myself), then for God's sake, call the police. That's what they're here for. Let's also petition for better lighting on our streets, more cops, more trees.

I, Dominic Sale do hereby vow to do as I've stated above. If we can get a few more to do it, then we've got a movement. If we get more after that, then we've got real change, and before long, WE'LL be the envy of DC. Don't wait for the police or the cleaning crews to solve our problems. They don't have a vested interest in our neighborhood. Only when the people of Mt. Pleasant start respecting themselves will the rest of the world start respecting us.

[Laurie Collins]

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[Officer Mattingly]

Dominic: Your points were well noted. However, as I walked to my home last night after parking several blocks away, I noticed that people do not have their outside lights on! People, I do not know how to get this point across to you - it is a MUST that "we" the citizens/residents of Mt. Pleasant must take action and ACTION begins with ALL of us to turn on our OUTSIDE LIGHTS at night! It is a true crime DETERRENT! Let's start there and move forward. A decrease in crime can not happen over night nor can improvements happen if there are only a few of us who are wanting to improve our neighborhood. WE all must take a stand and contribute within our community (personally) and form partnerships with the Police, Our Neighbors, and Other DC Agencies. Officer Mattingly

[Mark A.]

When I moved to Mount Pleasant 5 years ago I did something most people probably don't do. I looked at 3 months worth of crime statistics for every neighborhood we were considering. At the time, you could look at charts by going to the police precincts and get block by block reports by calling a police number. While anecdotal and old information, I think what I found is still useful. I looked at Capitol Hill, Logan Circle, West and East Dupont Circle, Glover Park, Adams-Morgan, Mount Pleasant and Columbia Heights.

Of those, only Glover Park had less crime than Mount Pleasant. Capitol Hill and Columbia Heights had eye popping statistics. But Logan Circle and both segments of Dupont Circle also had a surprising amount of property and personal crime. In fact, the area where I previously lived in Dupont Circle (O St.near West End) had more muggings and far more car thefts and break in reports than did Mount Pleasant. I didn't look specifically at Kalorama, but Adams-Morgan the Adams-Morgan area (which includes Kalorama) generally had more crime than did Mount Pleasant. It is worth also noting that crime was generally lower the farther you went west from 16th St.

Now, what does that mean now. Well, my own view is that crime in D.C. neighborhood seems to spike when targeted by one or two groups. This has happened in Mount Pleasant on occasion. But put in perspective it does not alarm me even as it makes me extra vigilant. I also think neighborhood activism gets information out to residents through the email list serve and this site, which serves to both inform and create fear. Being informed is good. Being cautious is also good. Reacting to crime by calling for action by the police and insisting that crime be squelched is also good. The only negative from access to good crime information is the fear building and fretting it seems to cause. Please understand I'm not denigrating the views of others here. Just trying to offer an alternative perspective that has been carefully thought through. It is also worth saying I too have been a D.C. crime victim, both of property theft and an attempted but failed mugging.

[Dominic Sale]

Mark,

Thank you for your response. I think that's a great idea to take it upon oneself to so thoroughly research the crime statistics, if not commendable. The only problem with that, which is one that I have found out even since my last posting, is that there seem to be crimes that are called in and not being reported. Example- my girlfriend's car was broken into just a coule of days before Christmas. Unfortunately she made the mistake of leaving gifts on display. When we called the crime in the next morning on the non-emergency number, the woman indicated that there were several other vehicles broken into, and I even spoke with a man who was witness to the crime. I'm not sure why this incident does not appear in DC crime reports, but that's at least 3 or 4 crimes that would not be accounted for if you're doing your homework.

I don't know if this is common practice throughout the District, but I have found out first hand that crime is underreported, at least in our area. And if I want to be extra-sceptical, I can infer that since 100% of the crimes I know have been called have no record with the District of Columbia. Had it just been me, I could write it off as a clerical error or something. But the fact that I know that several people called in and STILL there is no record leaves me with a feeling that either the District is intentionally underreporting, or that they just didn't consider it important enough to bother with. Either way I find it very disturbing. At least that answers my question as to whether someone is actually investigating this serial theft. Has anyone else called in a crime lately? Try checking up on it and seeing if there's a report. I doubt I'll be alone on this one.

As for your point about to much research making you paranoid, I totally know what you mean! It's a small price to pay though for a safer neighborhood, and a little paranoia can get you a long way in protecting yourself from crime.

Remember you folks on those side streets- leave those lights on at night!