Homeless populations especially vulnerable to crime

Amanda Abbott told police last week that she returned to her tent one evening to find its side slashed and her possessions stolen.

Abbott, a homeless woman who lives in Carrboro, said that her HP laptop computer, MP3 player, Blackberry cellphone and 50 DVD movies, according to police reports.

Like Abbott, homeless people nationwide often report that they are victimized by petty crimes and thefts, said Neil Donovan, the executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless.

But Carrboro police Lt. Chris Atack said when that happens, police are often forced to question the validity of the claims.
Atack said police officers have to question the truth of anything they are told.

“I wouldn’t say we use any extra scrutiny with reports from the homeless,” he said.

“We are an investigative body, so it is our duty to investigate all reports to make sure they’re plausible.”

But Atack said factors like privacy and address issues do prevent some homeless from reporting crimes to police.

And homeless people themselves said they question whether police take their reports seriously — and that can prevent them from seeking help.

Nathaniel “Pee Wee” Lee said when first noticed that his sleeping bag and comforters were missing from his tent, he did not hesitate to report the theft to police.

But when the police failed to return the missing items, Lee, a homeless man from Carrboro, said he felt his case wasn’t taken seriously by police because they did not take the time to fully look into it.

“The police didn’t do anything for me,” Lee said.

“They think because we’re homeless people that we don’t have anything.”

Donovan said homeless people often become victims of crime because they lead high-risk lives.

“Many homeless people comment on how tiring it is to live on the streets because they are constantly checking to see how risky things are and how vulnerable they are to crime,” Donovan said.

Atack even said that homeless people are more vulnerable to crime than Carrboro residents with homes because they do not have a consistent dwelling unit and therefore reporting the crime is difficult.

“For a burglary to be a burglary, there has to be a structure like an apartment or house,” he said. “So the larceny from the tent does not count as burglary.”

Atack also said some members of the homeless population will forego reporting a crime so that they can continue to lead low-profile lives.

“They are in the shadows, on the periphery of society,” he said.

Donovan said many homeless people refrain from reporting crimes because police have no way of reporting the status of their case back to them.

“Without being able to hear back, it causes many of them to throw their hands in the air and just say, ‘Forget about it,’” he said.

But Atack said police do everything they can to address any issues reported to them, regardless of whether the person reporting the issue has a permanent residence.

“We’re truth seekers. We don’t have an agenda,” he said. If someone reports something we’ll do everything we can to verify that it’s correct.”

“We have a generally good relationship with our homeless population, so a lot of times our officers will have an even and friendly exchange with them when they interact,” he said.

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