New Orleans crime down

Since Hurricane Katrina, crime is almost negligible in New Orleans. With the exception of a few notable incidents -- the shooting at the second line parade on Sunday is the most troubling sign of bad old New Orleans creeping back in -- New Orleans remains a very safe city. There continue to be reports of looting from split-level homes, especially in Lakeview, Gentilly, and New Orleans East, and I wouldn't encourage anyone to let down their guard with regard to the possibility of person's crimes. Nevertheless, the reduced crime is one more reason to be optimistic.

As evidence of the lower crime rate, at the NOPD Second District NONPAC meeting last night, Captain Hosli said that there were only three reportable crimes last week in the Second District, and one of those crimes was a contractor who stole something from another contractor. Even though the numbers of police officers are down, we were told the officers who remain assigned to the Second District have been able to increase their productivity tremendously because most of what they used to respond to before Hurricane Katrina were domestic disputes.