Police ask for help in dealing with gangs

Tucked behind the Highway 101 sound wall, the block is on the northeast end of North Central San Mateo. Its residents, mostly renters, do not belong to neighborhood associations and the only semblance of neighborhood watch is people peering from behind their living room curtains when violence erupts.

The San Mateo Police Department wants that to change and is calling on neighbors and community organizations to help put an end to the gang problem that escalated this summer. A community meeting is scheduled this Thursday night so residents of the neighborhood and police can take the first step toward breaking the spiral of gang activity.

"It falls back on the owners of the complexes to take charge of their area and the residents to take back their neighborhoods and it comes back to the parents that live there and their kids who are into gangs," said San Mateo police Capt. Kevin Raffaelli.

There have been at least four shootings on the block this summer and two people were hit in June. The shootings have not been life threatening. In response, police enacted a full-time patrol and arrested 24 people in the last six weeks for drug-related charges as a way of keeping the street clean. They're still coming up short, said Raffaelli.

"It's quieted down, but it goes in waves," Raffaelli said. "However, people are still living there and still coming to see them. We still have the chance of people getting shot there."

Victims and witnesses have been reluctant to speak with police.

"There is an innate distrust with the police," Raffaelli said.

By holding an informal community meeting with other organizations, the Police Department hopes to attract residents who would normally fear contact with the police.

The Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center will facilitate the meeting, which will include a short presentation from the Police Department about the problem and the steps it is taking to control the violence. There will be more presentations from local community groups including the Samaritan House and YMCA's Project Focus. Probation officers and representatives from the District Attorney's Office will also be present.

There will be smaller break-out session as a way to create dialogue between neighbors and the organizations, Raffaelli said.

Gang community meeting

The meeting will be held 7 p.m. Oct. 21 at San Mateo High School Performing Arts building, 600 Delaware Street.

Child care and light refreshments will be provided. For more information call San Mateo police at 522-7700.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106. What do you think of this story? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com