Springtime Has Police on Their Toes

The unseasonably warm weather has the officers of the 70th Precinct on the lookout, said Deputy Inspector Eric Rodriguez at Wednesday's Precinct Community Council Meeting.

Although overall crime , certain types of violations are on the rise because of the balmy temperatures. Rodriguez said that the precinct is targeting bicyclists and motorcyclers who have hit the city streets in droves.

"We've issued 119 summonses to bicyclists in the past month," he said. "We've seen people riding bicycles on the sidewalk, against traffic flow, through red lights. We're gonna target you. You have to follow the rules of the law when you are on a bike."

Biking is not just a traffic issue, it can be a crime issue in this area, Rodriguez added.

"A lot of the reports that I'm reading, people are snatching cell phones and wallets, it's someone riding a bicycle down the block real fast, snatching the phones and then riding away," he said.

Springtime is also a busy season for motorcyclists, who sometimes flaunt the rules of the road by wriggling in between cars, driving in the median, and speeding, Rodriguez said.

"We're seeing a lot more motorcycles as the weather gets warmer, and they come out and get involved with a lot more accidents," he said. 

Rodriguez also reported a 35 percent spike in grand larcenies over the past month, which he attributed to a combination of the weather bringing out criminals and the ubiquity of the iPhone 4.

"I've been talking about it from day one, and it continues," he said. "When you are on the phone, or you are listening to music, you're not paying attention to what you're doing. People are getting their phones snatched out of their hands. Thieves are looking for a weakness."