Crime concerns
The issue of organized crime activity in Rush County is one that the county sheriff and La Crosse Police Departments are not adequately addressing in my opinion. It's unclear if this is because they are underfunded, ill-equipped, poorly trained or if addressing issues of organized crime is simply not a law enforcement priority within their respective departments or the community.
I do know that a lot of crime goes unreported in the county because of its lack of public involvement or interest.
There are two reasons for this:
1) Both the Rush County Sheriff's Department and La Crosse Police Department, as a matter or policy and practice, don't publish "blotter reports" either online or in the local newspaper. So the majority of people here don't know what's going on. The only statistical information on crime in Rush County available to citizens is published on the Kansas Bureau of Investigation Web site.
2) The Rush County Sheriff's Department and Lacrosse Police department don't have or utilize Web sites and e-mail addresses to fight crime. Placing each department at a distinct disadvantage in terms of their crime fighting ability. Both in terms of being able to network and communicate with each other, as well with other law enforcement agencies at the federal and state level. By not using the Internet, Web sites and e-mail communication both departments lack the means to engage and interact with members of the public in real time 24/7.
Suspected "organized crime activity" in Rush County include:
* Drug trafficking of methamphetamine and marijuana.
* Federal, state and county tax evasion and fraud.
* Suspected cases of Medicare, welfare and insurance fraud.
* Illegal employment of undocumented aliens by local and outside construction contractors in the county.
* Alleged schemes to defraud people using the Internet.
* The purchasing and selling of unregistered firearms.
* The carrying of concealed weapons, without a license or carry permit.
Recommendations to local law enforcement, county and city commissioners include the following.
1) Encouraging greater public involvement at the local level through the establishment of Community Block Watch groups.
2) The development of interactive Web sites and e-mail addresses for both the Rush County Sheriff and La Crosse Police departments.
3) More training of local law enforcement personnel in the use of computers and technology.
4) Improving networking and information sharing capabilities at the state, county and local level among law enforcement agencies.
5) The publication online or in the local newspaper of police "blotter reports."
6) The use of anonymous crime tip hotlines and e-mail addresses.
7) The re-establishment of the METH-WATCH and DARE programs in Rush County.
8) The funding of community resource officers at both the La Crosse and Otis-Bison high schools in Rush County.
Ultimately, I think it's important to realize that the responsibility for fighting crime in the community is ours. Each has a role to play.
In too many cases, however, citizens refuse to get involved and report crime and suspected crime activities they have witnessed or have first-hand knowledge of themselves.
In some cases, not reporting crime is understandable given the very real possibility of retaliation or intimidation by criminals and organized crime groups. But in the vast majority of cases, the main factor why crime goes unreported in Rush County is because of apathy and indifference on the part of local citizens who simply don't want to become involved in the fight against crime in their community. So, in the end, we have no one to blame but ourselves.
We can change this around if we would just get more involved in our community.
So look, watch, listen and report crime in your community.
Robert Tilford
La Crosse