Fort Greene Top Cop Tries To Clear the Air After No-Show Meeting

No amount of air conditioning was enough to lower the temperature on Fort Greene residents hot under the collar after a perceived lack of police presence at a community meeting last week. 

During an 88th Precinct Community Council meeting in Fort Greene Tuesday night, residents — some of whom were livid — asked their local commanding officer where he had been during a meeting to discuss a May 31 shooting on Myrtle Avenue.

Deputy Inspector Scott Henderson set aside time at the top of the hour to address concerns before explaining how he plans to deal with a perceived increase in crime. 

"I have no problem meeting with anyone in this community," Henderson said. "I try and make the time, I just ask that you be reasonable." 

Residents were asked to hold their questions to the end of the meeting, though Henderson was not shy about addressing their concerns.

At times he deflected criticism, saying that the most important thing community members could do to help local officers was to communicate directly with the precinct.

He also said that police-monitored cameras will be coming to portions of Myrtle Avenue to help with policing, though he admitted the precinct will be getting no new police officers from July's academy class. 

For residents who had packed into the stuffy meeting hall on South Portland Street, that answer wasn't good enough.

More than one Fort Greene resident stood to complain about the shooting death of Antonio Wilson last month, saying that it had been the final insult to a part of the community that has long felt cut off from police protection.  

"We've made 15 arrests on Myrtle Avenue," Henderson said. "This area was an area of low crime, and we're dealing with limited resources. We have to be reactive sometimes."

Henderson also said that New Sapolo Restaurant — which many restaurants feel is the cause of a number of problems in the area — had been cited for serving to minors and was under police surveillance. 

As a kind of olive branch, Henderson said the precinct is planning to offer a callback service connected to 311 complaints, which would inform residents of police action in the area when a call is made through the city's system. 

"We will get back to you," Henderson said. "And we will tell you what happened."