San Francisco's Noe Valley has been the target of phone robberies and attacks by child gangs. Photo: Michael Makor/The San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images/Hearst Newspapers
Gangs of children armed with baseball bats rob mothers and nannies at a school during the latest wave of crime that has swept through San Francisco.
Last week, Noé Valley, also known as the “Valley of Carriages” due to its growing number of young families, saw 11 phone robberies that are believed to have been carried out by the same gang that is targeting women who pick up children from school.One woman was reportedly hit with a baseball bat and another was punched in the face before the perpetrator ran to the getaway car and drove away.
On Thursday, police arrested one minor in connection with 11 robberies and looking for the rest.
Rafael Mandelman, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors responsible for passing the laws, said there is a growing number of children “doing these really terrible things.”
“I think what happened to the children? not being in school, I think there might be something with this that we will experience for a while,” he said.
The Noe Valley, known as the “Valley of Carriages”, is home to many young families. Photo: Josie Norris/San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images/Hearst Newspapers. or didn't exist when everyone was under stress, parents and caregivers were under stress. In any case, it probably affected vulnerable communities more. Sociologically. who knows what's going on, but I wouldn't be surprised if we face the lasting consequences of this for a whole generation.”
Homelessness
In recent years, the California city has gone from being one of the most desirable places to live to one plagued by opioid use, a disproportionate rate of homelessness and rising crime.
Chesa Budin, a former district attorney, was ousted last year, introduced policies including not prosecuting children as adults, aggressively prosecuting police officers who commit crimes, and reducing the number of prisoners.
Robbings increased by 11% in the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2022 year.
Nole Valley Crime Victims Complain About 'Zero Answer' provided by the police. Photo: DianeBentleyRaymond
Violent robberies take place in broad daylight in wealthy enclaves like Noe Valley, a close-knit community where free yoga classes are held every Sunday in the town square.
One victim of a series of recent attacks who wanted to to be identified only as The CW, said the police appeared to show “zero interest” in investigating her attack.
She was thrown to the ground by a boy who stole her phone last Monday while picking up her daughter from kindergarten.
Neighborhood security caught video of the car and she was able to trace her phone for 18 hours after the attack. But after she reported the crime, not a single investigator reacted to what was happening.
When she emailed a police officer to ask who she could turn to to help “improve the way we deal with these issues,” she was told to “do a little research on her own.”
The next day, she drove to the police station. station to complain about the reaction when she saw a patrol car on the street where she was robbed.
Punched her face
It turned out that another mother was attacked in the same getaway car, but this time she got punched in the face.
“For 24 hours I was desperately trying to get the police to contact me to stop these guys. Zero answer. And then it happened again in the same place,” she said.
Mr. Mandelman said the city’s soft approach to crime helped “dismantle systems” without addressing underlying problems.
< p>“I don't think our intervention against people who commit petty crimes is particularly effective. I mean, okay, you don't put people in jail, but what do you do? Well, if you do nothing, what will be the result? Not really.”
The San Francisco Police Department did not respond to requests for comment.
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