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The peacekeeper of Chesterfield Square

Rita Banks looks out the window of her home in the South L.A. neighborhood known as Chesterfield Square. Per capita, the area leads the city in violent crimes. But Banks and other residents are fighting back by helping police with suspect descriptions and frequent tips.

Rita Banks looks out the window of her home in the South L.A. neighborhood known as Chesterfield Square. Per capita, the area leads the city in violent crimes. But Banks and other residents are fighting back by helping police with suspect descriptions and frequent tips.   (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

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The South L.A. community of Chesterfield Square has the city’s highest violent crime rate. But the stretch of Manhattan Place between 54th and 57th streets, a palm-lined row of aging homes and ungated lawns, has managed to become an oasis from crime. And a lot of people say Rita Banks, a 55-year-old grandmother, is a big reason why.

A mixed neighborhood

Chesterfield Square, once predominantly white, now has a mix of black and Latino residents.  (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

A sense of community

In the 1960s and ‘70s, Chesterfield Square homeowners put $2 into an account every month so if someone was sick or died, there would be money to help the family. Though that tradition has disappeared, neighbors still donate $4 at Christmas so the palm trees can be wrapped in foil, ribbons and a bow.   (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Time for a trim

Joe Randle gets a haircut from Leon Williams at Goof Fred Barber Shop. Although crime is down significantly across South Los Angeles, violence remains stubbornly common in pockets of Chesterfield Square and beyond.   (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

Outdoor mural

A pedestrian walks past a mural titled “No Justice, No Peace” on the exterior of a commercial building in Chesterfield Square. Rita Banks, who retired as a bus driver after an injury years ago, is part of a group of old-timers who keep the block together, as people have been doing here for decades.   (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

The lead sentry

Rita Banks organizes monthly block meetings and cleanups and is the ear for neighbors who want to talk about graffiti, suspicious activity and wayward children.   (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

A neighborhood fixture

From the shop owners down the street to the boys who hang on the corner, Banks is known as “Miss Rita.” Her gregariousness comes naturally -- the result of living on a street with deep Southern roots.   (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

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