Patrols Find Parks of San Fernando Harbor Little Peril

Statistics released Friday by San Fernando police after a monthlong undercover patrol lent credence to the thesis of city officials that crime is not a big problem at the city’s five parks.

Teams of plainclothes officers found no evidence of violent crime, vandalism, serious drug trafficking or gang activity during their weekend patrols, said San Fernando Police Lt. Don Rivetti.

Illegal alcohol consumption was by far the biggest police problem in San Fernando parks, with 108 citations issued for that offense during the patrol period, Rivetti said. A city ordinance allows police to cite offenders on the spot for public drinking, an offense that carries a $50 fine, then levy another $36 for administrative costs of processing the citation.

On Sidewalks, Streets

During the patrol period, throughout June, 15 other public-drinking citations were issued on sidewalks and streets around the parks.

Only five arrests were made during the patrol period. Two people were arrested on suspicion of possessing cocaine and one person on suspicion of selling marijuana. Two arrests were made for urination in public, Rivetti said.

Police also conducted 30 “field interviews,” Rivetti said, in which they questioned but did not cite park patrons who were acting suspiciously--loitering, harassing others or gathering for possible gang activities.

Most of the problems occurred at the city’s largest park, Recreation, on Park Avenue near the Civic Center and the San Fernando Courthouse, Rivetti said.

“Overall we have very safe parks,” Rivetti said. “This just goes to show that the perception that people have that the parks are unsafe may not be the proper perspective.”

$3,000 Approved for Patrols

In May the San Fernando City Council approved a $3,000 expenditure for special patrols after a citywide survey showed that residents generally stayed away from their parks because they thought they were dangerous and crime-ridden.

At the outset of the patrols, city officials contended that the problem was one of perception, not of rampant crime.

Many survey respondents said they thought that teen-agers who gathered at the parks represented gang activity, and complained of lewd acts on park property. The fact that fewer than 5% of those who were sent surveys responded to them indicated to some residents just how far the public interest in parks had fallen.

City officials said Friday that they can now point to the results of the patrols to demonstrate that the parks are not as dangerous as some may think.

“This is what I had tried to articulate before,” said David Watt, the director of the city Department of Parks and Recreation. “We do have some problems in the parks, especially with drinking, but they are not major crime areas in the city.”

Rivetti said the parks will continue to be patrolled periodically by undercover officers.