President Harris Pastides’ announcement in the aftermath of a student’s tragic injury that Five Points is not safe after midnight has been a long time coming.
For years now, USC’s de facto entertainment district has been stricken with bursts of violent crime — shootings, stabbings and armed robberies — and although the school’s own students were often victimized, it was usually the Columbia Police Department, not USC, who responded most directly.
Now, after a stray bullet has paralyzed a freshman student, USC has come out with a grim declaration and the outline of a plan to start fixing up the area’s crime troubles.
He began with the obvious: that USC’s students are the driving economic force that keeps Five Points businesses afloat. The bond between the two is undeniable, and subsequently the school, businesses and law enforcement all ought to band together to better protect the streets of Five Points.
Sound familiar? It should, because we’ve struggled with violent crime far too many times in the past as it is. But we hope that this time around local leaders will finally implement the drastic measures necessary to stamp out the crime before it gets any worse.
Pastides’ suggestions included making the area an exclusively pedestrian district on weekend nights to ease crowding on sidewalks and adding lighting and call boxes, though we consider those nominal patches rather than real solutions.
Columbia police ought to consider checkpoints — even metal detectors, if that’s what it takes — and stricter enforcement for loitering to combat the problem.
These suggestions are all well and good, and we hope city and business leaders will implement them. Still, these conversations have touches of déjà vu.
Crime has long been a struggle in Five Points, and every year, after a high-profile incident, police efforts are bolstered accordingly. Even so, stabbings, muggings and shootings seem to return before too long. We understand that some crime is inevitable in a city, but Columbia needs to look beyond patches and half-measures.
Flooding the area with police won’t fix a years-old problem. Neither will installing more cameras, lights or call boxes.
Crime in Five Points is a challenge that USC, police and Five Points businesses alike have struggled to solve. It’s time that each takes ownership of it and makes an effort to identify and remedy the root cause of the area’s troubles — and does so without pointing fingers.
Bars can hire more security or band together to agree to earlier closing times. Police can focus on identifying criminals instead of underage drinkers. USC can play a more prominent role in protecting its students off campus.
And if Pastides’ statement shows anything, it’s that those changes seem to be starting. Now, we need to make sure they see them through.