34 Comments

1. POSTED BY troubleinparadise  |  December 25, 2009 @ 5:00 pm

   Very sad and very disturbing. I know Cary has been working hard on making a plaza here, but seriously – just look at Church Street, it’s already a pedestrian friendly street and it’s dark, and dangerous because of the lack of vibrant businesses. Too many empty storefronts! The council should get out of the land grab and development business and concentrate on making all the business districts
   attractive to new business owners.
2. POSTED BY wellnesswoman  |  December 25, 2009 @ 6:42 pm

   Makes me want to go to First Night even less.
3. POSTED BY Walter Mitty  |  December 25, 2009 @ 8:29 pm

   Yes. Obviously this would not happen if the town ran a senior center, every business operating here had to provide a bike locker and we had an income tax surcharge to make living here more affordable.
4. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 25, 2009 @ 9:54 pm

   I’m so glad I moved out of Montclair. Crime was the #1 and only reason I chose to move; I would still be in Montclair today if it were not for the constant shootings, muggings, etc.
   The town is in denial that there is a serious crime issue, especially in the Bloomfield Ave. area. They like to give an impression the area is safe to be at all times. The majority of the crime is not even reported. An incident that I was personally involved in, as a victim, never made it to the police blotter.
   Something should be done. Even more than just extra patrols. Every night – yes, every night – there should be a DWI/registration/inspection sticker/license check on Bloomfield Ave. and other major corridors. Just imagine how many illegal items they could find in a car that has a taillight out, which happens to also be a drug running car.
   Undercover police officers should walk the streets and set up bait to catch criminals who commit crimes of convenience, like stealing an unattended and unlocked bicycle or car, to catch criminals with more severe criminals warrants. (Yes, that was straight from Cops).
   Being much more proactive and making Montclair a less convenient place for a criminal to “hang out” will go a long way in increasing the safety of the area. Even “suspicious person” checks and enforcing loitering laws in areas like Lackawanna Plaza will help tremendously.
   It is up to the town. If nothing is done, the area will look like Bloomfield and then Newark within the next decade. Make it uncomfortable for the criminals and they will go elsewhere. Get the word out on the street that Montclair is not the place to be committing crimes.
5. POSTED BY Sandy  |  December 25, 2009 @ 10:30 pm

   We do not have the violent crime in Bloomfield, that Montclair has. As of recent months crime mostly centers around stolen or broken into cars, especially those left on the street. Also, somebody beating the daylights outta a drinking buddy, kinda stuff. I came to Bloomfield from Maplewood, so for me it was like outta the cooking class & into the oven !! This kinda gang violent beheavor ias not present in Maplewood or South Orange nor Millburn nor Livingston or most places in West Orange. Shootings, & such. It seems to begin in Orange and then carry thru to Montclair. I don’t think even nearby Verona or the Caldwells have it.
   I recall when Columbia played Montclair in football way back in the sixties, there was always trouble. We almost always lost to Montclair, yet they still beat up a few of our players after the game.
6. POSTED BY Chris Porter  |  December 26, 2009 @ 8:23 am

   I know how to stop this stuff. Let’s buy a “community center” we cannot afford and raise property taxes.
   How many tax sale certificates is Montclair selling or foreclosing on? The answer is THOUSANDS.
   We should all recognize that the Montclair Council is forcing people out of their homes for silly projects like buying the Community Center.
7. POSTED BY relax people  |  December 26, 2009 @ 10:11 am

   Sigh.
   These idiots are coming out of South Park, drunk and aggressive. Classy place…
8. POSTED BY monty  |  December 26, 2009 @ 12:20 pm

   Everything you say makes sense. Lots of crimes in Mtc. are not making it into the police blotter. A while back two men attempted to bash in a locked door in my house – in the middle of the day. The whole family was home including me and my kids. Luckily my husband was home but only by chance because he had an appt. He chased them off. He could have been shot. Scariest part: those guys knew people were home. (cars in driveway, lights and TV’s on etc.)
   The cops caught them a few blocks away and they were charged with a major crime, spent the week in jail and finally got out and skipped bail. I doubt that the Mtc. cops are out looking for them. So what BayStreet says makes sense. Those guys are out there, still. In plain sight.
   Then there are the incidents when you don’t call the police. Last week, on Bloomfield ave, some guy was walking closely behind me making obscene and threatening comments. I was on my way to CVS (it was dark) but instead had to abruptly cross between 2 parked cars into the street and head back to my car. I went to the CVS in Upper Montclair even though I don’t live on that side of town.
   More police presence would go a long way here. Even if it just improved Bloomfield ave. It would be nice to get cough medicine at 8:00 pm without fear.
9. POSTED BY clear mountain - montclair  |  December 26, 2009 @ 1:16 pm

   wow im shocked
   was this “report” confirmed? this is my back yard we’re talking right near starbucks and raymonds etc? this is shocking
   more info would be helpful and very informative for a safe watch neighborhood
   thank you kindly
10. POSTED BY Mrs. Martta123  |  December 26, 2009 @ 2:10 pm

    I lived in Montclair from 1981 through 2004 and never personally experienced anything like the incidents described above, even though I walked around town at all hours of the morning and evening. Sure, we had crime but it usually was “contained” and not randomly directed. We didn’t read about crimes committed with guns too often.
    Now it appears to be a very different Montclair. This cannot be blamed entirely on the recession since there were periods of recession during the years cited above.
    More police presence would help certainly but we also need a strong presence on the bench. For the most part, the cops do their job and apprehend the
    criminals but then, as one posted mentioned above, they’re back out of the street in a week’s time.
11. POSTED BY AVoiceInTheWilderness  |  December 26, 2009 @ 3:20 pm

    confirmed with whom?
    did you click on the link in the story- takes you to the star ledger and they quote the police
12. POSTED BY bebopgun  |  December 26, 2009 @ 7:03 pm

    Why does the victim go to Newark instead of mountainside, no insurance?
13. POSTED BY montclairgirl  |  December 26, 2009 @ 7:37 pm

    University Hospital is a trauma center. Mountainside is not.
14. POSTED BY monty  |  December 26, 2009 @ 7:38 pm

    They took him to Newark because it is the nearest major medical center. The victim must have needed immediate emergency care/surgery that our small town hospital could not provide – especially in the early hours of Christmas morning.
    When my friends baby (from montclair) got a head injury the paramedics rushed him to Newark for emergency brain surgery. They saved his life.
15. POSTED BY monty  |  December 26, 2009 @ 7:42 pm

    Sorry montclairgirl – didn’t see your reply before I sent mine. Did not mean to be redundant…
16. POSTED BY funmom  |  December 28, 2009 @ 8:26 am

    I am also a person who has lived in Montclair from ’87 to 2001. Ok, so it is the hip town full of intellectuals and nice restaurants. Now that I live in Morris county, I can honestly say I love it here and the kids are thriving. You can keep your intellectuals and the criminals. I prefer a place where there is not a car stolen every day and voilent crimes are rare. Good-bye Montclair – we do not miss you!!!
17. POSTED BY AVoiceInTheWilderness  |  December 28, 2009 @ 8:56 am

    And we don’t miss you either. Please keep your car in your garage and don’t warm it up in the driveway or we’ll send our crack car thieves to import it back to our burb and you won’t get it back in one piece.
    PS Your kids will want to leave your boring utopia as soon as legally possible!
18. POSTED BY relax people  |  December 28, 2009 @ 9:02 am

    Soooooo…
    You both left Montclair and love, love, love your new digs..
    But spend Monday morning posting on a blog about…Montclair.
    Losers.
19. POSTED BY monty  |  December 28, 2009 @ 11:12 am

    Moved here in ’86 – move to nyc – and back in ’98 here since then. It was just as bad crime wise in my opinion. maybe just less communication about it.No blogs to tell you the big news.
    I lived on Union street near fullerton and my old beater of a Honda was stolen 3 times and (unfortunately) found and returned to me each time with lots of damage that was not covered by my meager car insurance. (They poured soda all over the seats and the stains never came out, etc.) Gross. FYI – it was always found in East Orange – criminals looking for a ride home.
    This stuff happened CONSTANTLY. All those beautiful houses that have been restored around Orange Rd. – past porter park to Elm – Most were run down and in total disrepair. Now they go for a million bucks.
    The only thing that has changed is that now there are more targets for the crime. And more instant media outlets to give you the news…
20. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 28, 2009 @ 8:38 pm

    funmom-
    I also moved from Montclair to Morris county and am loving it. No crime, plenty of great restaurants and no “know it all” liberals. Utopia.
    AVoiceInThe”Wilderness”-
    We go back to baristanet because, despite the crime, we still care what happens to/in the town. We have many friends there. It is a great town, and given some “hope and change” may be livable once again. Until then, I’m hiding out in boring utopia and getting my full dose of Fox & Friends.
21. POSTED BY Doc  |  December 28, 2009 @ 9:06 pm

    A comment thread run rampant with overreaction, personal anecdote stated as blanket fact and complete random speculation about topics in which people have no expertise (trying to make something out of the victim being transported to Newark, the designated Level I Trauma Center for where this occurred.) Oh and folks who don’t even live in Montclair jumping on the first chance to reaffirm their decision to move to the white-bread burbs of Morris County.
    Just another day on Baristanet.
22. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 29, 2009 @ 9:56 am

    Overreaction? A bullet was fired in the center of your town. There are a lot of people that could have been hit. Luckily, it only hit its intended target and not some innocent passerby or someone in bed in one of those use-to-be million dollar condos.
    I also overreacted the day a Newark Police helicopter was hovering over my house looking for the gangbanger who just popped someone on Bloomfield Ave. and ran in the direction of my house. The police hiding around the corner waiting for the guy to run in my direction was very comforting.
    That was the day I decided to move out of Baristaville.
23. POSTED BY monty  |  December 29, 2009 @ 10:43 am

    I remember that day BayStreet, and many like it. At the risk of being “shot” with “thumbs down” signs – where in Morris county? You mentioned safety, good schools, restaurants, etc…If I could actually sell my house, where (generally) in Morris County should I be looking? Morristown? Morris township? You know, “hypothetically”…If we were to consider breaking allegiance with Montclair, and turning in my “hip and intellectual” card. (Ready, Aim, Fire!) Thanks!
    PS Can you really warm up your car in your driveway in the winter and not have it stolen? That happened to my neighbor. Another neighbor was brining in groceries and in between putting down a few bags in the kitchen…off went her suv.
    The creepiest part is this: where are these guys hiding that they can move so fast when the opportunity is there?
24. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 29, 2009 @ 11:31 am

    monty-
    I’m not advocating that anyone leave Montclair. I understand why they would want to, but like Newark after the riots a mass exodus from Montclair would only damage the town more.
    If YOU want to move, there are plenty of free town comparison web sites available. There are towns near Montclair that are not as bad with crime, if you’d like to remain in Essex.
    I haven’t locked my doors every night, I leave first floor windows wide open in the summer, leave my car window down with the keys on the seat in the driveway when I know I’ll be leaving again and have no problem taking a stroll in the downtown after 1 am. I would never do any of the above in Montclair… and yet I don’t think twice about it now. My car was hit in a parking lot, and someone left a note with their phone number and address! As good as you can get in NJ.
25. POSTED BY monty  |  December 29, 2009 @ 12:00 pm

    Thanks BayStreet. I understand your not wanting to mention the town by name. I will check out some web sites I was just hoping for a starting place.
    I’m not proposing a mass exodus either. I love this town in many ways. But… between the crime and taxes its getting to be too much for us.
    I’ve been in the town a total of more than 20 years. But it gets to a point -especially with kids- where you may have to make the tough choice to move on. My kids are early teens. It won’t be too long before they may be getting out of a movie at 1:00 am on Church Street. The thought of them even witnessing this kind of criminal activity – can’t bring myself to imagine them being victims of it – is too much for me. Never mind where the taxes are headed.
26. POSTED BY Doc  |  December 29, 2009 @ 12:27 pm

    BayStreet: I grew up in the leafiest of the Morris County burbs and all the things you are doing reflect a naivete about where ever you are. Leaving your keys in your car in Denville or Morris Plains or Roxbury is as plain dumb as it is in Montclair. I’m from a town with what seems to be a zero crime rate, and dumb people have their lawnmowers stolen from open garages and Ipods stolen from unlocked cars there all the time.
    I’m not saying people should not be upset about a shooting happening in their town, but you know, they do happen. They happen everywhere. Crime happens in your little slice of paradise too. Living in fear rather than actually putting it in perspective is a choice — but man, not one I’d make. Someone was shot on the corner outside my office a few weeks ago. Did I quit my job? No, the pimp who shot the other pimp at 3 am when I was safely home in bed can’t change how I live my live.
    Being delusional about living in the greener burbs is why parents wonder later, how the hell did my kids get involved in such crazy drug use in such a pretty little town? Because it’s mostly WORSE in places like Budd Lake and Sparta and Vernon than it is here, for a lack of anything better to do and a sports driven (and nothing else) culture. I choose to live in Montclair because I grew up with about 2 non-white faces in my high school, a place where it was unsafe to be gay or lesbian or different and where you were made to feel a loser if you weren’t a star quarterback. There are upsides and downsides to every place.
    Montclairians should be concerned about crime. But really — making a parallel to the Newark riots? Really?
27. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 29, 2009 @ 5:51 pm

    My new town hasn’t had a murder in the past 10 years, possibly longer – not sure, the stats readily available don’t go back further. Montclair has had 6 murders, one of which happened 4 blocks from me when I lived there.
    The property rate crime per 100k people was 710 my town. Compare that to Montclair’s 1,885. Statistically, I’m almost 3 times more likely to be a victim of a property related crime in Montclair vs. my Morris county town.
    My town- 710
    Montclair- 1,885
    Dover- 1,715
    How your kids turn out has a lot to do with yourself. Good kids can be raised in places like Newark, even in the South Ward of Newark. Drug use is universal, to say it is worse one place than another is delusional. There are probably plenty of professionals in Montclair that are addicted to pain killers, and they get them readily from their doctor. It isn’t any different from the teenagers in Sparta snorting heroin. Same drug – opiate.
    The parallel to Newark riots was meant only as an example of what a population loss can do to a town. I’m not saying anything like that would happen. But on a smaller scale, if 20% of Montclair moved at once above and beyond the normal churn, it could have a really bad effect on the town. Especially with rents, the rents would go down so low you’ll get a lower class, higher crime producing population in town – thus increasing the downward spiral.
28. POSTED BY Pork Roll  |  December 29, 2009 @ 6:41 pm

    I understand your not wanting to mention the town by name.
    I don’t give Bay Street a pass on this. If you are going to talk smack about how much Montclair sucks compared to your new-found suburban utopia in Morris County, then have the courage of your position to name the town in which you now reside. What’s the big secret?
29. POSTED BY Pork Roll  |  December 29, 2009 @ 6:43 pm

    I understand your not wanting to mention the town by name.
    I don’t give Bay Street a pass on this. If you are going to talk smack about how much Montclair sucks compared to your new-found suburban utopia in Morris County, then have the courage of your position to name the town in which you now reside. What’s the big secret?
30. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 29, 2009 @ 7:11 pm

    I’d rather not. People in Montclair who know me and where I live now would be able to guess who “BayStreetStation” is, thus blowing my anonymity on this site. I’d prefer to remain anonymous. Thank you for understanding.
31. POSTED BY monty  |  December 29, 2009 @ 8:16 pm

    Baystreet is correct in not mentioning the name. I’m sorry I asked. I will also say that I don’t consider BAYSTREET to have been talking smack. Smack was started with baystreet for simply commenting about the crime here and moving out.
    DXRRXD- As far as kids doing drugs, they will try them/use them/stop using them or get hooked depending on many factors but I’m not sure living in a leafy community with sports programs is a leading cause. I also suspect that most towns in Morris county have a little more going on than sports and white people. Have you ever been to Morristown? There are plenty of towns with lower crime AND richly diverse populations.
    To not be concerned about the recent wave of gun violence in this town would be foolish – whether you stay or go. This was not an isolated incident.
32. POSTED BY BaySteetStation  |  December 29, 2009 @ 9:07 pm

    monty- Morristown, according to the stats I’m looking at, has a higher average crime rate than Montclair. Just thought I’d mention that before the vultures strike.
    Good luck in whatever path you choose. It is unfortunate after 20 years of living in Montclair you’re even thinking about moving. Hope it all works out for you.
    I’ve beat this thread to a thread, so I’m signing out now.
    Good night and good luck.
33. POSTED BY monty  |  December 29, 2009 @ 9:35 pm

    Thanks! The crime stats depend on where you look. But I appreciate the heads up! See you in the next melee! Good luck in your new home. Happy New Year!
34. POSTED BY KatebirdRex  |  December 30, 2009 @ 10:04 am

    Wow, all the arguing about Morris Cty. vs Montclair is fun and all… but getting back to the original topic, has any other info been published about this incident? Specifically, any idea what the motive was, and was it random or not?
    My office is very near there and I often work late, so I’d like to know if, say, there are armed muggers targeting random passersby on Church St. these days.

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