NEWS

'Interrupters' hope to end crime cycle in Wilmington

Yann Ranaivo
The News Journal

A few on nearby sidewalks curiously observe as Derrick Chambers breaks the silence overtaking the streets of Wilmington's Hilltop neighborhood one afternoon.

Clutching a megaphone, the 41-year-old fiercely pleads for residents to no longer turn a blind eye to the many inner city youth who could one day become another number in the city's alarming crime figures.

Shaka Dorsey (left) and Mildred Turner plead for an end to the violence plaguing Wilmington. Members of Cease Violence, an anti-violence group in Wilmington, rally at the corner of Fourth Street and Franklin Avenue on Friday.

"No more memorials for 2015," Chambers shouts. "We're still in the same old state. Killing's not working. It don't got be like that.

"Get involved in their lives. Get involved in their after-school activities."

Chambers is one of the "interrupters" in a program the city launched in late August that sends former convicts or street-hardened residents into hotspots to try to turn troubled youth and young adults away from a life of crime. Based on a larger national program, Cease Violence uses a combination of general outreach work and on-the-spot intervention.

While the interrupters typically spend their days and nights embedded in the streets, the Wilmington program last week set up several rallies on the city's toughest blocks to try to give the effort more visibility.

"Part of what we do is to get community buy-in," said Keith Pettiford, a Cease Violence field supervisor. "We don't want to to just take over corners. We want them to be a part of what we're doing."

Members of Cease Violence, an anti-violence group in Wilmington, rally at the corner of Fourth Street and Franklin Avenue Friday.

The interrupters stress that they are not affiliated with law enforcement in any form, a distinction they say is important to point out if they want to see success. They say their job is to simply build relationships to try to turn the troubled persons away from crime.

"How effective do you think we would be if we called the police on these guys and then come out and try to talk to the guys the next day? It doesn't make any sense," interrupter Clarence Mitchell said, referring to criminals' refusal to deal with anyone who might rat them out. "That's not our objective."

The interrupters say their backgrounds also make them ideal for preventing violence because they understand exactly the mentality of the criminals.

"You go to be where they are," Pettiford said.

Pettiford said he believes the keys to turning the culture around are education and "a sense of value and hope." Once the youth begin to see the value of a life away from crime, "you got to put something there to replace it," he said.

Pettiford said the interrupters stress to the youth that obtaining an education can lead them to a much more rewarding life than crime.

Pettiford mentioned a recent visit of the Ferris School for Boys where he talked to some youth there about the importance of being educated. He said correction facilities are ineffective if people leave them in the same mentality they entered them in.

The interrupters say Mitchell has had much success stopping the escalation of beefs between youth. He works the area around the Williams "Hicks" Anderson Community Center.

Mitchell said last week that he handled a situation where two people -- one from his zone and another who lives around Governor Printz Boulevard -- were on the verge of killing each other over a bicycle. He said the person who lives around Governor Printz was being accused of stealing the bike.

Mildred Turner calls for an end to the violence plaguing Wilmington. Members of Cease Violence, an anti-violence group in Wilmington, rally at the corner of Fourth Street and Franklin Avenue on Friday. The interrupters stress to the youth that obtaining an education can lead them to a much more rewarding life than crime.

The bike situation appears very minor, but the youths' lack of maturity and guidance turned it into a big deal, Mitchell said.

Mitchell said he planned to speak to the person in his zone Friday night to weigh out the cons of the situation.

"Is this guy's life worth less than this bicycle? Is your life worth less than this bicycle? Is it worth going to prison for the rest of your life over a bike? Is it really worth it?" Mitchell said. "To resolve issues without resorting to gun violence, it takes a man to do that.

"Anybody can pull the trigger, but it takes a man to admit he's wrong and resolve issues without somebody dying."

On Saturday, the city hit another low when the 28th homicide was recorded.

Mitchell said he's found in his work that many troubled youth and adults in Wilmington's toughest area don't support violence. Even the ones who consider violence are very reluctant about it, he said.

Sometimes, people leading a troubled life just need someone to talk to and look out for them, Mitchell said.

Mitchell and the interrupters hope their work sends a message of action to the rest of the city.

"We might can't save everybody, and we're not trying to, but we're going to save somebody. We're going to help somebody," he said. "We're looking for the domino effect."

Chambers' past includes a drug charge in 2007 and a weapons offense in 1996. Sometimes, he said, prevention is just taking some time to lay out the realities of the world.

For example, Chambers said many people who get involved in crime don't understand how incredibly tough it can be to get a decent job later in life if they have a felony on their record.

"When you're younger, they don't tell you what it's going to lead to down the road," he said.

Derrick Chambers calls on Wilmington residents to stand up to violence during a Cease Violence rally.

Chambers also urges parental involvement. Many times, he said, the youth just don't receive the guidance from the right authority figures.

As he shouted on the megaphone, Chambers called on the community as a whole to provide guidance.

"Yes, your child ... could be the next president," he said.

Victor Rodriguez, who runs the Rodriguez Food Market in Hilltop, said he hopes the interrupters increase their work in the city's toughest blocks.

Rodriguez said he thinks one of the few ways violent crimes will drop is if laws for various offenses are toughened up. Criminals, he said, can't get the idea that they "can beat the system."

"You go to put it on there hard," he said. "They're going to be like 'Oh ... they're not playing around.'"

Contact Yann Ranaivo at (302) 324-2837, yranaivo@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @YannRanaivo.