Is Increased Enforcement Paying Off in Highland Park?

The numbers tell a compelling story.

According to Crimemapping.com, 13 violent crimes--many of them shootings--were reported in Highland Park between July 15 and July 31.

In the two weeks between August 1 and August 15, crimemapping.com shows only one violent crime--a report of a shooting at a moving vehicle.

What changed? On Thursday, July 27, LAPD Northeast Division Senior Lead Officer for Highland Park, Nina Preciado,

"It always helps when we have more officers--the more the better. [We] try to cite [...] people for anything, arrest them for anything," Preciado told Patch. "[We're] try[ing] to do zero tolerance, anyone goes to jail for any little thing."

LAPD Detective Richard Ortiz told Patch on Wednesday that added officers have led to some key arrests of alleged gang members in Highland Park.

"We focused our resources in the area of those shootings," Ortiz said. "The good thing is, our gang officers know they area really well. They know the gang guys, too. If they see two of them together, they can search them, because we've served an injunction that doesn't allow gang members to be around each other. That's led to some arrests."

Patch Asks: Have you noticed an increased police presence and a decrease violent crime over the last two weeks in Highland Park? If so, does seeing extra police cars on the street make you feel safer? If not, what crimes have you been seeing around the neighborhood, and where?