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Search for Stolen Bikes Uncovers a Vermont City's Deeper Problems

15 points by asnyder 4y ago

anonym29 4y ago
https://archive.ph/UVr6x https://archive.ph/UVr6x
pifm_guy 4y ago
Very long article with no real conclusion.
adolph 4y ago
The Progressives on the Council tend to be left leaning on many issues and often at odds with the city’s Democratic mayor. And in June 2020, the Progressive members of the Council successfully sponsored a measure that sought to reduce the size of the city’s police force by about 30 percent. [...] The police say making arrests for bike thefts could be challenging. They cite a memo from the local prosecutor which stipulates that, according to Vermont law, in order to effectively prosecute someone the police must prove the person “actually knew” the property was stolen. [...] “We have an increase in houseless folks around Burlington,” Ms. Hightower said. “It is not something people are comfortable seeing and it sparks an emotional response.” [...] Mr. Turner and the others in the group say they believe the bikes that end up in the park are being sold in exchange for drugs. [...] “Meth is a game changer,” said Ms. Boudah, the leader of the outreach team. Some Meth users are known to become fixated on stealing things — such as bikes.
Fricken 4y ago
Bike theft rackets have sprung up in cities all over north america. The only notable thing about this article is that Burlington's problems are a cliche. A friend who lives in the same neighbourhood as myself recently had cops hanging out in his garage to stake out the house across the alley, which was being used as a drug den/bike chopshop/whorehouse at the time. The police shut (the local) operation down eventually, but doubtless another sprung up not too far away.
tomcam 4y ago
> Bike theft has long been a problem in Burlington, a city of about 45,000 residents, but it seemed to intensify over the summer and into the fall. Several paragraphs later: > And in June 2020, the Progressive members of the Council successfully sponsored a measure that sought to reduce the size of the city’s police force by about 30 percent.
- iudqnolq 4y ago
  > it seemed to intensify over the summer and into the fall. It "seems" interesting that, despite interviewing lots of people who should be in a position to record stats, the article never quantifies the size of the headline issue beyond this sentence. > Several paragraphs later: You seem to be implying the article doesn't connect the progressives to the crime increase . It does, repeatedly.
ZeroGravitas 4y ago
I was hopeful that the opioid thing would be a wake-up call for the US drug war, but apparently not. Homeless people, addicted to Meth and/or fentanyl, stealing a bike. I'm a cyclist, but if the bike is the part of that sentence you focus on then your society is falling apart.

15 points by asnyder 4y ago

anonym29 4y ago

https://archive.ph/UVr6x https://archive.ph/UVr6x

pifm_guy 4y ago

Very long article with no real conclusion.

adolph 4y ago

The Progressives on the Council tend to be left leaning on many issues and often at odds with the city’s Democratic mayor. And in June 2020, the Progressive members of the Council successfully sponsored a measure that sought to reduce the size of the city’s police force by about 30 percent. [...] The police say making arrests for bike thefts could be challenging. They cite a memo from the local prosecutor which stipulates that, according to Vermont law, in order to effectively prosecute someone the police must prove the person “actually knew” the property was stolen. [...] “We have an increase in houseless folks around Burlington,” Ms. Hightower said. “It is not something people are comfortable seeing and it sparks an emotional response.” [...] Mr. Turner and the others in the group say they believe the bikes that end up in the park are being sold in exchange for drugs. [...] “Meth is a game changer,” said Ms. Boudah, the leader of the outreach team. Some Meth users are known to become fixated on stealing things — such as bikes.

Fricken 4y ago

Bike theft rackets have sprung up in cities all over north america. The only notable thing about this article is that Burlington's problems are a cliche. A friend who lives in the same neighbourhood as myself recently had cops hanging out in his garage to stake out the house across the alley, which was being used as a drug den/bike chopshop/whorehouse at the time. The police shut (the local) operation down eventually, but doubtless another sprung up not too far away.

tomcam 4y ago

> Bike theft has long been a problem in Burlington, a city of about 45,000 residents, but it seemed to intensify over the summer and into the fall. Several paragraphs later: > And in June 2020, the Progressive members of the Council successfully sponsored a measure that sought to reduce the size of the city’s police force by about 30 percent.

iudqnolq 4y ago
> it seemed to intensify over the summer and into the fall. It "seems" interesting that, despite interviewing lots of people who should be in a position to record stats, the article never quantifies the size of the headline issue beyond this sentence. > Several paragraphs later: You seem to be implying the article doesn't connect the progressives to the crime increase . It does, repeatedly.

ZeroGravitas 4y ago

I was hopeful that the opioid thing would be a wake-up call for the US drug war, but apparently not. Homeless people, addicted to Meth and/or fentanyl, stealing a bike. I'm a cyclist, but if the bike is the part of that sentence you focus on then your society is falling apart.