Jan. 20--SAN BERNARDINO -- A routine neighborhood meeting featuring Police Chief Robert Handy as guest speaker was interrupted by an unidentified man who claimed a government conspiracy is the reason he is missing some of his teeth.
Otherwise, the roughly 40 residents gathered Thursday for the Del Rosa Neighborhood Action Group's meeting at the Native Sons of the Golden West building heard Handy talk about issues ranging from the uptick in violence to nuisance crimes.
"And I refuse to be the type of police officer, police chief that will concentrate on only one thing, so we're not going to just go after the homicides, or just the robberies, or just violent crime, we're going to try to do everything we can in all those different areas," Handy said.
He said he was drawn to the area not only because of the Police Department's crime-fighting reputation, but because of its reputation for working effectively with a tight budget and in a tough political climate in City Hall.
Handy said violent crime, including robbery and sexual assault is up in the city.
There have been four officer-involved shootings since he arrived three months ago, Handy said.
"We are working on a strategy to try to tackle some of those things," Handy said.
He said even though a small percentage of the public is affected by violent crime, it can spill over into communities that for the most part deal with nuisance issues.
"We want you to help us identify our priorities and where we spend our time," Handy said.
Indeed, the effort is in line with Handy's vision to carry on community policing here in San Bernardino.
The Del Rosa group includes both county and city residents.
The association's boundaries extend from Highland Avenue on the south to the foothills to the north, the Twin Creek Flood Control Channel on the west to Sterling Avenue on the east.
Handy remained poised when, during the middle of the meeting, an unidentified man stood up and handed him papers, and said they were related to a government conspiracy to oppress Americans.
The man spoke of mind control and "government repression" in San Bernardino.
"As you can see, my teeth are coming out of my mouth because of what they're doing to me," he said.
Two police officers escorted him out of the building.
Reach Josh via email, call him at 909-386-3885, or find him on Twitter @SBcityNow.
Copyright 2012 - San Bernardino County Sun, Calif.
