Neighborhood watches increase in Suffolk

More than a dozen neighborhood watch groups have sprung up in Brentwood, Central Islip and Bay Shore recently, part of a grassroots effort by residents and Suffolk County police to combat crime.

The formation of 16 groups in the last 14 months came as part of a response by the Third Precinct to a spike in murders and violent crime.

"We were looking for a way to unify the community, law enforcement and government," said Charles Ross, the precinct's community liaison officer. "Crime and gang issues are complex. We all have to work together to resolve it and take control of it."

Ross pushed personally to get residents involved. The groups have 59 sector captains who listen to neighbors' concerns and keep in regular contact with Ross.

Participants work as the eyes and ears of authorities by vigilantly paying attention to people who come into their neighborhoods, officials said.

Ross said participation in neighborhood watches had been minimal in the past. But as violence spiked, Ross said he redoubled efforts to get residents involved. The results, he said, were impressive.

Residents like Doris Davidson, a captain of Brentwood's Northeast Neighborhood Watch, the first group established after Ross' push, volunteered to knock on hundreds of doors and hold meetings.

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Davidson said she was inspired to start the group, which includes about 40 families, in March 2010 after she saw a man trying to break into a neighbor's home. Since then, she said, she feels safer and has noticed an increased police presence.

"We didn't know one another a year ago," Davidson said. "Now, people care."

Shalema Ford, president of the Bay Shore Woods Community Association Neighborhood Watch, said it's all about being proactive. "Nobody gets involved until there's a problem," she said. "We want to stay ahead of the game."

Claude Byer, captain of the Cone Avenue Neighborhood Watch in Central Islip, has lived on his block for 30 years. His neighbors often looked out for one another but decided to organize last winter under the Third Precinct to gain law enforcement support. "It gives us a legal eye that says you can't do what you want to do here," he said.

Ross said the groups have generated more tips to police but added it is hard to measure their effect on crime. Some violent crime is down compared with last year, Ross said.

In Brentwood, robberies are down 47.6 percent and aggravated assaults decreased by 5.6 percent, Ross said. In Central Islip, robberies were down 8.1 percent, but aggravated assaults were up 11 percent, he said.

For Kurt Kronemberg, who last month launched the newest group, The Bay Shore Watch Dogs, after he became frustrated about graffiti and escalating violence, it's all about taking back power.

"I'm worried about the drug activity coming into our neighborhood," he said. "The criminal element knows people aren't involved in our neighborhoods and they are doing whatever they want. We aren't going to let that happen."