nonviolent crimes was flat compared with 2021. (The number of violent crimes is rela- tively small, though, so even a small bump in crime can produce a large jump in percent- ages. Keep in mind as well that the number of crimes is influenced by the number of people in Deep Ellum, and the pandemic has affected that.) According to DPD’s count, rape and mur- der are rare, with no rapes and one homicide reported in the first five months of this year, though the latter may not account for a shooting that left two people dead in May. For most heading out for a night of music and drinking, the bigger worries are less ex- treme: Will someone break into your car? Will you be mugged? Will you get your ass kicked? Looking at the period of January-May over the past three years, DPD counted 48 motor vehicle burglaries in Deep Ellum in 2020 as the pandemic shut down venues, 193 in 2021 and 180 this year. The department re- ported seven robberies of individuals in both 2020 and 2021 and 17 so far this year, a siz- able increase. Non-family aggravated as- saults stood at 22 incidents in both 2021 and 2022, down substantially from 47 in 2020. So the counts are up, down and flat, but DPD’s numbers don’t take into account a sketchy guy hassling a woman who later finds her car door smeared with a “sticky sub- stance.” Incidents like that might not gener- ate a police stat, but they add to the general sense of unease afflicting the neighborhood. And while homicides are rare in Deep El- lum, it doesn’t take many to drive the fear factor up. Shark attacks are rare too, but if the media reports that someone was eaten at the beach on Friday, people will naturally be reluctant to jump into the water on Satur- day. That helps explain why one of the big- gest contributors to this fear among local musicians are recent shootings at some of Deep Ellum’s most prominent locations. A fight in the early morning hours of Friday, May 13, on Elm Street near the Crowdus Street intersection led to a shooting that in- jured three people and killed two others. The shooting happened a day after the Deep Ellum Foundation, a neighborhood group, unveiled a new community safety plan. “I saw the bodies on the floor,” says Jo- seph Cabrera, who provides security work and promotion for venues in the Deep Ellum area. “I heard the gunfire and went to the roof and saw people injured and one was de- our number one priority,” says DEF Presi- dent John Hetzle, a partner at Madison Partners, which oversees properties across Lower Greenville and Deep Ellum. “We think it’s critically important for us.” The foundation’s plan recommends a number of measures, such as covering the neighborhood with DPD foot and mounted units when incidents are most likely to hap- pen and bringing in officers from specialized units that target gangs and can control traffic. Hetzel says the DEF is also adding secu- rity cameras in the neighborhood with a third party consultant and scheduling street clo- sures on Main and Elm Streets between Good Latimer Expressway and Malcolm X Boule- vard, since most gun violence involves autos. “We have to sweep our own sidewalk here in Deep Ellum, and we’re not gonna just use the excuse that violent crime is happen- ing everywhere so what can we do?” Hetzel says. “We’re going to do everything we can to make sure people are safe in Deep Ellum.” Crimes are “VIOLENT CRIME MUST BE STOPPED FIRST. THE FIGHTS I SAW AFTER HOURS WERE RIDICULOUS, DANGEROUS.” - MUSICIAN SHARLA FRANKLIN more likely to happen as shows end and crowds pour out of venues start- ing around 11 p.m. Chris Lewis, a secu- rity officer with Exclu- sive Protec- tion Services watches over venues like The Nines and Cheapsteaks and says reducing loitering crowds is key to reduce the poten- tial for violence and crime. “I tell my guys, use words like ‘police,’ Mike Brooks Musician Poppy Xander will still frequent Deep Ellum, but with running shoes, she says. ceased, I believe. Seeing that was very shocking and scary.” The mood didn’t get any better when rap- per T-Pain moved his show last month at The Factory in Deep Ellum to Grand Prairie. We’re open! Monday - wednesday 5pm-12am Thursday -sunday 5pm-2am Please check our Facebook Page for more up-to-date info! 2 2714 Elm St • 972-803-5151 armouryde.com puffnstuffsmokeshop.com 17 WE CARRY CBD! He first took to TikTok last April to complain about low ticket sales for his Dallas show. The shooting prompted T-Pain to make the move to the Texas Trust CU Theatre. “At the DEF, we consider public safety ‘jail’ and ‘let’s just go home,” Lewis says. “It seems like there’s more people just hanging and looking for things to do and there’s no after-hours life for a lot of those people who want to hang out. Just being able to do crowd control, you’ve gotta push the option for these people to want to go home.” Franklin says she’d like to see a police presence trained to calm crowds rather than just control them. “When crime goes up, there should be more protection,” Franklin says. “Of course, getting rid of bad apples and adding some- one specialized in mental health would be great, but violent crime must be >> p18 BEST KRATOM IN TEXAS! 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