It seems a burglary is an everyday occurrence lately.  Shootings, stabbings, and beatings have become commonplace.  It has been ages since I have read in The Democrat about police chief Danny White having any plan to stop the crime wave, and taking action.  The last thing I read about stopping crime from Mr. White was that citizens should form neighborhood watch programs.  There is nothing wrong with neighborhood watch programs to ASSIST the police.  I do believe the police should take the lead.  The police are law enforcement.  Neighborhood watch groups are not law enforcement.

This next statement is hearsay.  I have heard from a few people that have contacted the police about a situation. The police said that they are to wait two weeks before a report would be filed, and then the citizen would have to go to the police station to file a report. If this is true, it looks like a bogus attitude on the part of the police.  To the best of my knowledge a police report should be filed at the time of contact with the citizen. Waiting two weeks to start an investigation is like turning your horse loose for two weeks before trying to find him.

In my opinion, the city of Natchez needs to pay police officers a competitive salary to keep the officers from going elsewhere for a larger salary.

In my opinion, the city of Natchez needs a police chief who will aggressively pursue criminals and get them off of our streets.  This constant crime wave needs to end now.

Robert Blair

Natchez resident