01/Feb/2008
Crime Stoppers Cuts Crime in Baton Rouge Through Protection and Rewards to Citizens
By Jenny Kornuta
Have you ever heard of Crime Stoppers? Many in the Baton Rouge community have, but the question remains: How does it work?
The answer to this question is answered by the executive director of the 25-year-old Baton Rouge program, Sid Newman. After the creation of the program in 1976 in Albuquerque, N.M., Sid Newman heard about it in 1980 and began to build Baton Rouge’s version.
Crime Stoppers covers eight parishes such as Livingston, Iberville, Point Coupee, East and West Baton Rouge, East and West Feliciana, and Ascension. The organization works with federal, state and local law enforcement, the media and the community members to actively find the answers to crime in the area.
“[The program] offered something that no one else was offering, and that was anonymity,” Newman said. A privately owned organization, Crime Stoppers is completely anonymous. When a concerned citizen calls in to the 24-hour Crime Stoppers hotline, he is never asked to give his name but is given a code number.
“We don’t know who they are, they never have to testify in court, and no one will ever know that they called Crime Stoppers … They have to stay in touch with us,” Newman said.
With their code numbers, the concerned citizens who call in have a suggested time to call back to find out if the information they provided was useful. Depending on the value of the information given and whether or not it led to an arrest, indictment, or recovery of stolen property, the caller could be awarded up to $1,000.
If an individual is offered an award, he is advised to visit a chosen bank on a certain day and drive through the lane furthest from the teller to collect his money. The bank is given envelopes with a code number from Crime Stoppers and the individual gives the teller a piece of paper with the code number and Crime Stoppers written on it. All awards are given in cash.
Crime Stoppers relies heavily on donations from the community, and anyone can donate. “We use the money strictly for catching bad guys,” Newman said.
Crime Stoppers is a worldwide program with more than 2,500 locations. Baton Rouge Crime Stoppers has been recognized time and time again as a standout contender in the field. The program has won numerous awards such as Most Productive, Most Improved, and Most Creative Media Use. Newman said that if he and his team have done anything wrong over the past 25 years, they “have not acknowledged the successes enough.”
Crime Stoppers’ fugitive initiative has proved to be one of Baton Rouge’s most successful. Each week, the local news features a Fugitive of the Week, and community members are encouraged to call in with information on those individuals. A $250 award is given to whoever can provide information on those fugitives. In 2006, out of the 100 featured fugitives shown on the news, 95 were arrested. A similar percentage was accomplished in 2007.
One of Crime Stoppers’ latest initiatives is the Campus Crime Stoppers program. Local middle and high schools have been given the opportunity to set up their own independent board of directors to help educate the youth of the community on how to use Crime Stoppers. Both Southern University and Louisiana State University also have their own chapters of Campus Crime Stoppers.
Another new initiative for Crime Stoppers is its partnership with the Lamar Corporation. Digital billboards are becoming more widespread, so Crime Stoppers is working with this new innovation to get the faces of wanted fugitives to the public faster.
Since its inception, Crime Stoppers has solved 173 homicides, 1,796 burglaries, 3,452 narcotics crimes, and 197 auto thefts. The program recovered over $10 million in stolen property and has solved more than 9,500 felony crimes. The organization has given more than $1 million in reward money.
“The law enforcement can’t be everywhere, but it is just as much your responsibility as a citizen in the community to report some kind of criminal act,” Newman said.
To report a crime that you have witnessed or for more information, call Crime Stoppers at 344-STOP (7867) or visit CrimeStoppersBR.com for details.
By Jenny Kornuta
Have you ever heard of Crime Stoppers? Many in the Baton Rouge community have, but the question remains: How does it work?
The answer to this question is answered by the executive director of the 25-year-old Baton Rouge program, Sid Newman. After the creation of the program in 1976 in Albuquerque, N.M., Sid Newman heard about it in 1980 and began to build Baton Rouge’s version.
Crime Stoppers covers eight parishes such as Livingston, Iberville, Point Coupee, East and West Baton Rouge, East and West Feliciana, and Ascension. The organization works with federal, state and local law enforcement, the media and the community members to actively find the answers to crime in the area.
“[The program] offered something that no one else was offering, and that was anonymity,” Newman said. A privately owned organization, Crime Stoppers is completely anonymous. When a concerned citizen calls in to the 24-hour Crime Stoppers hotline, he is never asked to give his name but is given a code number.
“We don’t know who they are, they never have to testify in court, and no one will ever know that they called Crime Stoppers … They have to stay in touch with us,” Newman said.
With their code numbers, the concerned citizens who call in have a suggested time to call back to find out if the information they provided was useful. Depending on the value of the information given and whether or not it led to an arrest, indictment, or recovery of stolen property, the caller could be awarded up to $1,000.
If an individual is offered an award, he is advised to visit a chosen bank on a certain day and drive through the lane furthest from the teller to collect his money. The bank is given envelopes with a code number from Crime Stoppers and the individual gives the teller a piece of paper with the code number and Crime Stoppers written on it. All awards are given in cash.
Crime Stoppers relies heavily on donations from the community, and anyone can donate. “We use the money strictly for catching bad guys,” Newman said.
Crime Stoppers is a worldwide program with more than 2,500 locations. Baton Rouge Crime Stoppers has been recognized time and time again as a standout contender in the field. The program has won numerous awards such as Most Productive, Most Improved, and Most Creative Media Use. Newman said that if he and his team have done anything wrong over the past 25 years, they “have not acknowledged the successes enough.”
Crime Stoppers’ fugitive initiative has proved to be one of Baton Rouge’s most successful. Each week, the local news features a Fugitive of the Week, and community members are encouraged to call in with information on those individuals. A $250 award is given to whoever can provide information on those fugitives. In 2006, out of the 100 featured fugitives shown on the news, 95 were arrested. A similar percentage was accomplished in 2007.
One of Crime Stoppers’ latest initiatives is the Campus Crime Stoppers program. Local middle and high schools have been given the opportunity to set up their own independent board of directors to help educate the youth of the community on how to use Crime Stoppers. Both Southern University and Louisiana State University also have their own chapters of Campus Crime Stoppers.
Another new initiative for Crime Stoppers is its partnership with the Lamar Corporation. Digital billboards are becoming more widespread, so Crime Stoppers is working with this new innovation to get the faces of wanted fugitives to the public faster.
Since its inception, Crime Stoppers has solved 173 homicides, 1,796 burglaries, 3,452 narcotics crimes, and 197 auto thefts. The program recovered over $10 million in stolen property and has solved more than 9,500 felony crimes. The organization has given more than $1 million in reward money.
“The law enforcement can’t be everywhere, but it is just as much your responsibility as a citizen in the community to report some kind of criminal act,” Newman said.
To report a crime that you have witnessed or for more information, call Crime Stoppers at 344-STOP (7867) or visit CrimeStoppersBR.com for details.
