San Francisco Chronicle

On Pretrial Incarceration for Juveniles

Papering over crime

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

From time to time, the intersection of violence, politics and surrealism is paved in newsprint.

This week saw two news items appear on the same day and in the same newspaper, painfully showing how detached from reality San Francisco City Hall has become. The front page told the tale of Orlando Ware, a young and habitual criminal, who gunned down a teenage drug dealer from whom he had moments before stolen dope.

Ware was no stranger to the circuses of criminal courts and probation proceedings. Ware's record included accessory after the fact to robbery, multiple probation violations, "riotous" behavior in rehab, threats of assault and battery upon a school counselor, and much more. Ware was sliding rapidly into the criminal life that infects many under-patrolled regions of the city, and destined for a life in jail. With a murder rap pending, this fate may soon arrive.

The government was not without options in handling this young miscreant. Alternatives ranged from juvenile detention to a rehabilitation ranch in another city. Yet over the objections of prosecutors, Ware was let loose on the streets in the Bayview and two weeks later pumped a bullet into another man's head. The victim's father noted this civil betrayal, saying, "They are supposed to keep the guy in jail for the record he got ... People like that you cannot keep on the street."

The city government's response to such hideous crimes was buried deeper in the same newspaper, headlining the "local" section. Its solution: Paper.

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera, in what passes for "getting tough on crime" in San Francisco, is asking courts for injunctions against a handful of known gang members, all linked to drug dealing, intimidation of residents and killing innocent bystanders. The injunctions are designed to limit the public association of the thugs in question, and suspend their wearing of gang colors. According to Herrera, the court proffered documents will "take back the streets."

I'm sure the gang members are cringing.

The first job of government is to protect good people from bad people. Career criminals in the Norteņos and Eddy Rock gangs, or junior desperados like Ware, must be separated from civilized society to prevent the ongoing mayhem that City Hall apparently condones. Rehabilitation may be an option, providing it occurs behind locked doors or prison bars. In Ware's case, rehabilitation did no good, for once paroled and on the loose, he had zero guidance or discipline -- just ample opportunity to harm others.

Ware is not alone. About half of all murders are committed by people on such "conditional release" programs, a statistical reality reported by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. Mayor Gavin Newsom and City Attorney Herrera's empty bravado are part of the reason violent crime in San Francisco ramped up 5 percent in the last reporting year. But police, prisons and juvenile centers cost money that politicians would rather spend on influence, and involve real work that is much more difficult than crafting headline-grabbing proclamations. Brave talk is cheaper than real action, and providing the body count doesn't rise to high, re-election is assured.

After all, an ounce of image is worth a pound of performance.

Guy Smith is the author of "Gun Facts: Debunking Gun Control Myths", www.GunFacts.info

This article appeared on page B - 11 of the San Francisco Chronicle