Local, federal cops go to war on violent crime in north Columbia

There’s a story told in north Columbia that the best way to keep from being shot is to hide in a bathtub until the gunfire dies down, law enforcement officers say.

To counter spiking gun violence in Columbia’s Greenview neighborhood, federal and state law enforcement officials unveiled plans on Thursday both to prevent outbreaks of gun violence as well as to arrest perpetrators.

“We have another strategy, and it does not involve bathtubs, said South Carolina’s U.S. Attorney Sherri Lydon to a group of Greenview area residents and community leaders at an outdoor press conference.

Greenview — a collection of mostly residential neighborhoods in northern Columbia roughly bounded by Interstates 20 and 277 and North Main Street — has some of the most violent crime rates in South Carolina, Lydon said.

A new sound detection technology, installed mostly throughout the north Columbia area, shows that area has had 261 gunfire alerts since mid-April through Thursday afternoon. The central part of the city had 118 such alerts, compared with 51 alerts during the same time period in the south Columbia area. The 261 gunfire alerts in the northern part of the city since mid-April detected 810 bullets fired, according to city police records.

The strategy to lower the violent crime rates, part of a federal program called Project Safe Neighborhoods, involves a partnership between law enforcement and residents to target the “approximately 5% who are committing 80 to 90% of our violent crimes, ” Lydon said.

Tactics include:

▪ Smart policing to identify high crime spots and potential violent offenders in the area.

▪ Coordination between local police, state prosecutors and federal prosecutors to move quickly to arrest violent offenders caught committing a crime and get them into the pipeline for federal prosecution. Federal laws concerning ex-convicts caught with guns can carry a minimum of 15 years in federal prison.

▪ Public service ads asking people to tell police if they hear gunshots or see suspicious activity. “If you see something, say something, and we will do something,” Lydon said.

▪ Working with ex-convicts, especially those on probation, to let them known the police are watching and to help them re-adjust to civilian life.

▪ Continuing to distribute gun locks to lessen the possibility that children in a home will get shot by their parents’ guns.

Also on hand at Thursday’s press conference were Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott, Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Assistant Special Agent Brian Mein, as well as some 20 uniformed city and county law enforcement officers and a dozen or more state prosecutors from the U.S. attorney’s and 5th Circuit Solicitor’s offices.

Holbrook said the program will concentrate on the “trigger-pullers” and “gang bangers” to make sure they are nabbed quickly and stay behind bars — “detention and not catch and release.”

‘Be a nosy neighbor’

The new “shotspotter technology” is already producing “tremendous results,” Holbrook said.

The mounted camouflaged sound detection boxes located throughout parts of north Columbia are catching the sound of gunfire and quickly relaying the location to officers on patrol who speed to the site. The technology has resulted in 25 weapons being confiscated in the north Columbia area, according to city records.

But Lott warned that Columbia residents also can do their part to stop crime. Lott said many violent offenders in Columbia get their guns from careless gun owners who leave their guns in unlocked cars.

“Don’t leave your guns in the car. Don’t leave your guns in your cars and vehicles,” Lott told the crowd. Everyone — schools, parks, religious communities, neighbors — all have to work with law enforcement to solve the problem, Lott said.

“Be a nosy neighbor. When you see something, call us,” Lott said.

Roberta McKelvin, a longtime Greenview resident, said she hopes the new effort works. Five years ago, her son, Nathaniel McKelvin III, was sitting on a front porch on Martha Street in north Columbia when gunfire erupted and he was killed.

“They came into the community shooting,” Roberta McKelvin said. “He was 21 and had just gotten his trucker’s license.”

Gloria Woodard, president of North Columbia Civic Club, which includes the greater Greenview neighborhood, said she’s on board with the new strategy. “I thought it was great.”

“When a few bad actors are removed from a community, the community can thrive,” Lydon said. “We can’t do it without you. You know what’s going on.”

This story was originally published July 25, 2019 at 4:05 PM.