Big Crowd for El Cerrito Crime Meeting

Public concern over crime in El Cerrito drew a crowd of about 225 people that filled the multi-purpose room at for a community meeting Monday night with El Cerrito police.

Top leaders of the department – including Police Chief Sylvia Moir, Capt. Michael Regan and three lieutenants – attended.

The size of the turn-out at the police-sponsored gathering was similar to the one that overflowed Arlington Park Clubhouse on Oct. 12 in the wake of a rash of residential burglaries.

The Madera school meeting focused chiefly on robberies, following high-profile robberies last month, including a Feb. 7 robbery and battery at OK Cleaners, two home-invasion robberies Feb. 14 on King Court, and a sidewalk robbery on La Honda Avenue on Feb. 17.

One significant piece of news for the audience at the meeting came when Det. Sgt. Scott Cliatt said the two suspects in the Feb. 17 robbery on La Honda were later captured when their car ran out of gas on the Dumbarton Bridge during a police pursuit. That pair – a man and a woman – have been linked to crimes in several other cities, he said.

"I'm real proud to say the suspects in that case are in custody," he said. After the meeting, he said they were arrested Feb. 28. The pursuit began in Martinez and involved the sheriff's department and California Highway Patrol, he said. The victim in the La Honda Avenue robbery was a man who had just gotten off a bus and was walking home about 8:05 p.m. when confronted by the robbers.

As widely reported in the news media, the suspect in the Feb. 14 home-invasion robberies, Edgar James, was captured the same day after allegedly engaging in a multi-city crime spree and has been charged with 19 felonies.

Cliatt also offered a profile of robberies over the past five years (2007-2011) in the El Cerrito hills, where the meeting was held and where many of those in attendance live.

There were 20 robberies in that period, he said, noting that half of them occurred at night between 9 and 10:30. Another six occurred between 2 and 5 p.m. when kids are getting out of school, he noted. A common type of robbery among all robberies in the city, he said, is one student taking an item like a cell phone from another by force or by threat of force.

Seventeen of the 20 robberies in the hills in past five years involved pedestrians, and two were interrupted burglaries, he said. One is recorded as a home-invasion robbery, though some doubt exists about the circumstances, he said. The figures do not include the crimes from last month, he noted.

Cliatt also offered several crime-prevention tips, including trusting your instincts when you sense something wrong, keeping the front of your house well lit, parking in your garage or as close to your home as possible, calling police whenever you see something suspicious and walking with confidence and a sense of purpose when out on the street.

"I've talked to many robbery suspects over the years, talked to them about how they find that person that they're going to victimize," Cliatt said, "and a lot of it comes down to that person didn't look like they were going to fight back. If you walk with a purpose, like you're confident what you're doing, then that communicates a message."

If you find yourself the victim of a robbery, don't resist, Cliatt said. Readily surrender any items the robber demands, he said, stressing that your possessions are not worth your life.

Police were asked if crime has increased in the city, and Moir said that it has not in general except for a slight increase in burglaries.

Cliatt recommended that residents take advantage of a police department program under which an officer will do a burglary-prevention assessment of a home, making suggestions of measures that could help increase safety and discourage criminals. To arrange an appointment, he said, residents should contact Lt. Steve Bonini (stb@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us).

Asked why police no longer issue a crime log or incident reports, Capt. Regan said preparing such reports consumed valuable time of a detective corporal who can now spend that time on detective work. He said El Cerrito crime information can still be found at crimereports.com.

In emergencies, citizens should call 9-1-1, police said. Calls to 9-1-1 from land lines and cell phones both now go directly to the Richmond police dispatcher, who handles dispatch for El Cerrito police, Cliatt said.

To report suspicious activity that is not an emergency or to contact police for other reasons, call the department at 510-215-4400 during normal business hours and 510-237-3233 nights and weekends.