A baby's death is tragic. But so is the loss of any other innocent life, as well as the waste of lives that have no future other than drug abuse, prison, and early death. It is time to take back the city.
On Aug. 9, two people walked up to the rear patio door of a residence at Moody Manor and fired at least 12 shots into the apartment. One shot struck 1-year-old Keondra Hooks in the head. She died less than 12 hours later.
Her crime? She lived in a housing complex claimed by one gang, the Manor Boys, that has a running feud with another gang, the Cherry Woodz, which claims the Greenbelt Place apartments on Cherry Street as its turf.
At least 126 people have been shot in Toledo this year. There have been 21 homicides, 15 by guns.
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Moody Manor, which is indirectly owned by the Catholic Diocese of Toledo, has a long history of violence. Just two days after Keondra's death, her mother reportedly was assaulted, threatened, and told to forget her dead child by a group of men at the apartment complex.
Toledoans should not have to live in fear, as do many who live in neighborhoods dominated by gangs. What to do?
Part of the answer is a more aggressive police posture. Toledo has 574 police officers -- 440 patrol officers and 134 command officers. That's 1.65 officers for every 1,000 residents, well below the national average of 2.7. There are only 12 officers in the department's gang unit.
The city plans to increase the number of police officers to 600 by the end of 2013, and to install surveillance cameras in high-crime areas. The gang unit should be strengthened as well.
The arrests of three alleged Manor Boys on obstruction charges seems part of the get-tough policy Police Chief Derrick Diggs talked about a few months ago. If so, keep the pressure on the gangs.
That also will require the good people who live in these dangerous neighborhoods to work with police to reclaim their city. Forgiveness is exemplary, but it won't end the gangs' reign of terror.
Gang members must learn that there is no Manor Boys or Cherry Woodz territory. The Lil Heads, X Blocc, Stickney 33, and Choloz do not run this city.
People who want better lives must organize to take back their apartment complexes and neighborhoods. Those who want a future for their children need to contact police to identify perpetrators, starting with young Keondra's killers. Someone knows something.
At the same time, city officials must remember that crime suppression alone is not a solution. A larger police force is needed, but it should be combined with ways for gang members and other young criminals to turn their lives around.
Mayor Mike Bell has said a new day is coming, "and it's all about love." It needs to be tough love, and needs to start now.
First Published August 23, 2012, 4:00 a.m.
