L.I.U. Attempts to Call a Ceasefire in Lake-I

This morning in the Lake Independence community, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Doctor Richard Rosado led a team from the Leadership Intervention Unit into gang-ridden neighborhoods in an attempt to broker a ceasefire among feuding groups. Tension between various gangs has increased considerably since Sunday when several persons were injured during a shooting on La Croix Boulevard.  On Monday, there was a pair of retaliatory shootings which resulted in the murder of forty-eight-year-old Darien Banks. The L.I.U. has been working diligently to ensure that the area returns to a sense of normalcy in the wake of the deadly shooting.

Richard Rosado

On the phone: Dr. Richard Rosado, Deputy Commissioner of Police

“We did a sit down with the two groups in the [St.] Martin’s area to ascertain what was causing the recent spate of violence and at the end of the day, both sides reached a common understanding.  So today we were doing a follow through with the guys on the ground from the different groups to see if the level of tension has somewhat dissipated.”

Isani Cayetano

“How does the level of tension dissipate if there was loss of life and there is a clear issue or conflict between both groups?”

Richard Rosado

“Whenever there is a spate of violence, families are affected, individuals are affected, communities are affected and emotions are high, so the healing process will take some time and we know that for tension to dissipate to a certain level it will take a process and the Leadership Intervention Unit is cognizant of that and we intend to do further follow up with the guys on the ground.  Whenever there is a dispute, whether it’s at home, whether it’s at school or whether it’s on the street, the L.I.U.’s multi-sectoral conflict team believes that it is best that all parties come together and thrash out their difference in a peaceful manner.  We believe that this is part of restorative justice and it is on this basis that the L.I.U. has built its approach.”

Isani Cayetano

“There is this fear that perhaps there will be some kind of retaliatory measure taken on either side of this issue. There has been an increase in police presence in Lake Independence, but beyond the conversations that you’ve had with the respective groups, what is being done to try to allay the fears of residents of Lake Independence?”

Richard Rosado

“We took out the entire Conflict Mediation Team on the ground to give reassurance to the community to give the families affected, to the individuals affected that the police department and the multi-sectoral team will do all that is possible to ensure that their concerns are addressed and that we provide the necessary security so that they can go about doing their daily activities in a peaceful manner.”