MILWAUKEE— An increase in carjackings and car break-ins in the City of Milwaukee has city leaders frustrated.
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson held a press conference Friday with Common Council President Jose Perez and Milwaukee Police Inspector David Feldmeier.
Feldmeier said instances of “entries to auto” have gone up by 31% this year compared to last year, calculated over a 30-day period. He said so far, no arrests have been made, but the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) should be making progress “shortly.”
“There have been some recent instances of vehicle break-ins and carjackings that have been really troubling over the past couple of week,” Johnson said. “We’re seeing these criminal acts in multiple parts of the city.”
Johnson said there is a dedicated team of officers that has been mobilized to stop these crimes. Feldmeier echoed that, saying includes the team officers on bikes, in squad cars and plain-clothes officers who would not be visibly obvious to the public.
Perez spoke on behalf of the council.
“We’re seeing an uptick in all our neighborhoods,” he said. “The carjackings, the armed robberies, on the South Side we have an uptick in shootings.”
He mentioned knowing that some of these offenders are repeat offenders.
“We need the rest of our partners to come to the table and work with us and we’re asking the public, step up your game and contact the police,” he said. “I’ve asked my constituents, 'If you call the police two, three and four times per week, let us know because we want to follow up with those calls.”'
Feldmeier said MPD is following up on several leads related to auto thefts and carjackings in downtown Milwaukee.
“If you have the opportunity to park a vehicle in a garage, please use it,” he said. “If you have to park on the streets, [do so in] well-lit areas.”
He also cautioned people not to engage with criminals, noting neighborhood watch groups. He urged the public to call police and report suspicious activity.
“One of our residents engaged and ended up being shot at so, these individuals can be dangerous,” he said. “I would caution those groups to be observant and to report what they see.”
He said in many cases, the crimes are being committed in groups by young people in their mid to late teens and early 20s.
“We come time and time again to these news conferences and we have to continuously tell people to be aware,” he said. “We have to continuously tell people that we’re working on these things when we know that there may be a failure somewhere in our criminal justice system.”
“What’s happening now isn’t working. We have to fix it.” Perez said. “We’re at a tipping point and we’re talking about prolific, repeat offenders. We have to create a better accountability method for all the entities; probation, parole, the court system, everyone involved. We have to step it up.”
Johnson called for strict accountability for those who get caught.
“There are so many people who have had their car windows smashed in, or who have had their cars taken from them that are going to feel that when they go to their cars from now on,” he said.
As he’s done before, Johnson also called on parents to be accountable.
“For those parents who are taking a lackadaisical approach to parenting, you cannot off-load your parenting responsibility onto society. Everyone has a role,” Johnson said. “The police have their role. The council has its role. I have my role. The DA and prosecutors have their role. Parents have the biggest role of all, and we have to act like it.”