The now former LAPD Wilshire Division commanding officer, Capt., Shannon Paulson, thought the answer to solving the growing crime problem in the Melrose area was to no longer allow vendors and street gambling.

Clearly, that did not address the problem, but Paulson was recently promoted anyway, never implementing any real plan to combat the crime siege in the Melrose area.

Councilmember Paul Koretz, who is a career politician, is leaving office next year due to term limits and is far more focused on finding his next job by running for city controller than continuing to represent his constituents in the 5th District, including the Melrose area.

After receiving a great deal of criticism for remaining silent for months from those of us who live and work in the Fairfax District, while crime in the Melrose area continued to grow, Koretz is finally claiming that he is going to address the problem. This is too little too late, especially for the young man working at the Melrose shoe store who lost his life, or the numerous recent victims of armed robberies who have been traumatized in the Melrose area, or the businesses on Melrose that have seen a dramatic decrease in business because the crime siege in the neighborhood is scaring customers away.

Robert Cherno

Fairfax District