Last night, at about 2 am, I was awakened by the sound of agitated voices coming from the front of Ridge Street home. When I looked out the window, I was horrified to see a group of young black males kicking and punching (and presumably robbing) a middle-aged white male who was lying in the middle of the street, attempting to ward off the attack. One of the young black males was yelling to his companions, "Leave him alone! Leave him alone!" Within moments of my coming to the window, the robbers were running towards M Street; the victim got up and and began to run towards N Street, stumbling once to ground before getting up and continuing to flee. I opened the window and yelled out to the victim "Do you need any help!," but he kept running (quite understandibly; he must have been absolutely terrified). I immediately called 911. The operator who took my call indicated that she had notified the police and that they were on their way to the sceen, but I never saw a police car drive down the street (at least not with lights flashing). Given the way that the victim had stubbled to the ground, I was concerned that he might have been more seriously injured (e.g., perhaps stabbed), but I was afraid to leave my house and walk up the street alone to check. Would anyone happen to know if any of the residents of Ridge Street have formed some sort of "crime watch" program? I wish I could have been able to call other neighbors who could have joined me on the street to check on the victim's status until the police arrived (assuming the police actually did bother to check). Also, would anyone happen to know how I might verify whether the police did, in fact, respond to my call?
Posted By martin / At 12/6/08 6:32 PM
