Since 1990, the percentage of people living in poverty has remained relatively stable or slightly increased in the east of the Anacostia River communities, places which also experienced the biggest recent decreases in murders. The number of murders dropped by 55 percent in 2011 in the police’s 7th District, where more than one-third of people live below the poverty line, according to census estimates. In 1990, about 28 percent of residents there were impoverished.

In recent decades, many people moving out of east of the river communities settled in Prince George’s County. But those individuals who were moving weren’t the poorest people in their communities, and they didn’t leave because of gentrification, according to demographer Roderick J. Harrison. Many moved to the suburbs because they could afford to and they were getting more for their money further away from the city.

But despite Police Chief Cathy Lanier's natural desire to take credit ("We had to go out there and really build relationships with people in the neighborhood. They have to trust us."), it isn't all due to community policing either:

What does explain the drop in murders east of the river? For one, violent crime nationwide is on the decline, and the exact reasons aren’t fully known.

The correlation between U.S. murder rates and District murder rates is pretty clear. As of this year, for the first time in nearly 50 years, murder is no longer on the top 15 causes of death for Americans. Back in the early '90s—when D.C. was the "murder capital"—homicide was at its highest position on the list, at 10.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

One of the protesters, Heidi Sippel, told a crowd at a press conference at 7th and K streets NW that she had suffered a concussion and bruising in the second of two collisions Friday night. Another, who said he was a witness, said the driver of a silver Lexus—one of the cars involved in the collisions—turned on to 7th Street, stopped and "menaced [Occupy DC] for a split-second," and accelerated to between 20 and 30 miles per hour.

Occupy D.C.'s beef with MPD began after the driver of the Lexus was briefly stopped but then allowed to pass without any citation. Things escalated over the weekend when Assistant Police Chief Lamar Greene appeared to suggest at a press conference that Sippel might have "drunk dove" to the pavement. Sippel, standing beside her wife and 13-year-old son, told the crowd today that she "took great offense" at the insinuation. Members of the group also complained that since Friday, the police had not taken any statements from any of the people involved in the collisions or any witnesses.

From the convention center, Occupy D.C. walked down to MPD headquarters escorted by a buffer of perhaps a dozen police vehicles. The march was mostly peaceful, with the typical chants of "Show us what democracy looks like/This is what democracy looks like" and "No justice/no peace," turning momentarily testy at the intersection of 7th and F streets where an MPD officer blocking the corner with his motorcycle was greeted by one angry marcher with, "Fuck you! What are you doing?"

At the MPD building, which was ready with a battery of officers barricading the doors, several members of the group repeated their demands to be interviewed as witnesses in the collisions. Like many statements made at Occupy rallies, messages were delivered via the call-and-response system known as the "people's mic." Sippel stood at the top of the stairs outside the building and issued most of the requests.

But elsewhere on the pavement, other protesters were less polite than Sippel and turned their ire toward the officers standing guard.

"They're just following orders," said one middle-aged woman, who repeatedly attempted to include police officers among the "99 percent" the Occupy movement rallies around.

"This building will be shut down for ever," shouted Michael Patterson, 21, who aside from the occasional burst of anger kept his mouth hidden by a black bandana. "Fuck them."

Later on, Arsenio Rodriguez, 24, stood up and claimed he had videotape of an MPD officer putting his hands around the neck of one of the victims of Friday's crashes.

"You take orders for money and sometimes that hinders humanity," he said. Rodriguez said he would be uploading the video to YouTube or UStream, but has not yet done so.

The protesters got a response, but not the one they were hoping for, when MPD Chief Cathy Lanier said in a written statement that Occupy D.C. "is no longer a peaceful protest." The statement came not long after Wade Simmons, a 41-year-old Petworth resident, proclaimed, "Today, we declare war!"

But just before 2:30, things appeared to have changed inside MPD headquarters, as Sippel and others were told they would be allowed to enter and give statements. The crowd let out a cheer, then proceeded to their next destination.

"We are victorious, but not all the way," Simmons said. "Don't trust 'em. We're still going to the Wilson Building."

Photo by Benjamin R. Freed

Occupy This: Everything was going relatively well between the Occupy D.C. protesters and the various police agencies charged with patrolling downtown D.C.—until, that is, a car hit three protesters Friday night by the convention center, and police declined to charge the driver because he had a green light. In response, Occupiers criticized the Metropolitan Police Department's handling of the incident. Lo and behold, Chief Cathy Lanier suddenly declared the group was getting violent. Moral of the story: Decry corporate greed all you want, just don't say anything bad about MPD. -3

Million Dollar Maryland: The state to our north and east turns out to have more going for it than just Ikea, crabcakes, and The Wire. A new study says Maryland has the highest percentage of millionaire households in the nation, with 7.22 percent, just edging out Hawaii, at 7.21. +1

The Friendly Skies: Going to the airport is a hassle these days, what with the TSA trying to grope you and your flight likely to be overbooked. Apparently one man was driven to extremes by it all today at Dulles—he stripped down naked and wandered through the terminal. Worse: He kept his shoes on, meaning he couldn't have actually boarded a plane, anyway. -1

Going In The Right Direction: Last year, the San Francisco 49ers were 6-10, same as the Washington Redskins were. This year, the Niners are 7-1, and the Redskins—after losing yesterday, 19-11, to the visitors from California—are 3-5. Afterwards, coach Mike Shanahan said the team was "going in the right direction," even though they've now lost four games in a row. Which means besides whatever problems the team has, fans also have to worry that the coach doesn't actually understand basic English. -2

Friday's Needle rating: 37 Today's score: -5 Today's Needle rating: 32

The Power Of Pepco: Next time the lights go off during a thunderstorm, and you grumble about the rates you're paying for electricity, just remember they could be higher, if Pepco wasn't getting so much money back from the feds. Turns out the company paid an effective federal tax rate of -57 percent over the last three years, thanks to loopholes Congress, in its infinite wisdom, has seen fit to make available to corporations. The utility paid the lowest tax rate of any company in the nation, according to Citizens for Tax Justice. -2

#OccupyTheSenate: Unemployment in the District was 11.1 percent in September. Which meant there was no shortage today of unemployed D.C. residents to stage a protest in Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's office. The Kentucky Republican didn't meet with the group (in part because they occupied his Russell Building office, not the main one he uses in the Capitol). Something tells us he won't rush to hire any of them, despite their clear skills in generating media attention. +2

What's In A Name?: The days of ever-expanding Metro station names are over—mostly. The Metro board voted to scale back most hyphenated names to emphasize just one part of the cumbersome terms that have sprung up in recent years, except in a few cases where—either due to neighborhood protests or changing geography nearby—they kept compound names around. So much for our plans for the Woodley Park-Zoo-Adams Morgan-Washington City Paper stop on the Red Line. +2

Lanier Likes It Here: Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier is one of the most popular figures in local government (admittedly, the bar's kind of low these days). So chances are, she'll get her wish when she asks Mayor Vince Gray to keep her on after her current contract expires. No word on whether Gray plans to replace her with Sulaimon Brown. +1

Yesterday's Needle rating: 38 Today's score: +3 Today's Needle rating: 41

Reagan Airport, District of Reagan, Reagan States of Reagan: The fourth (and final) privately-funded Ronald Reagan statue to mark the 100th anniversary of the president's birth has been placed—this one at Reagan National Airport, where, at nine feet tall, it towers menacingly over passers-by. To commemorate the commemoration, WTOP checked in with travelers at the airport, many of whom just call it "National." Said Wisconsin's Kathleen Meehan: "I've never understood the people who feel he's such a beloved figure. My daughter refuses to call it 'Reagan.'" According to WTOP, "The only thing Meehan gave Reagan credit for was 'the destruction of the middle class.'" -2

Shooting Down Crime: Police Chief Cathy Lanier says that an arrest was made "within minutes" of the Georgetown shooting last night. Of course, adds Fox 5, "The police chief would not speculate whether that person will be charged in connection with the shooting of the teen." -1

Too Expensive Times 7: The District's most expensive condo costs $7,777,777. Chew on that for a while why we try to figure out what it's made of. Gold? Spider silk? Marble imported from the moon? Then again, Curbed says it has four parking spaces, which may make it worth that much money all on their own. -2

Not So Young and Hungry: Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton is taking a congressional challenge and living off of food stamps for a month. Norton has found it challenging, to say the least. According to Y&H, participants can only spend $31.50 a week, which breaks down to $4.50 a day. "What I'm really learning is that it's impossible to buy nutritious food for $31.50 a week," Norton told CNN. -3

Yesterday's Needle rating: 45 Today's score: -8 Today's Needle rating: 37

Sommer Mathis

The hiring and firing of individual public information officers is the kind of story that only journalists care about. These are the people who reporters rely on to get back to us quickly with accurate information, and when they appear to lose their jobs for over-sharing with the media, it naturally rankles. Not only is it a sign that the current administration is interested in making it more difficult for reporters to do their jobs, but the best PIOs, like Piringer, tend to have personal relationships with the journalists they talk to everyday. Nothing can set off a wave of resentment across an entire press corps like the removal of a decent flack.

But this particular move by the District, to stem the tide of information coming out of the city's fire department, should alarm anyone who cares about transparency and responsiveness in local government. It's also part of a larger picture that's emerged over the last several months of the current administration's desire to keep crucial public safety information out of the hands of the public.

Piringer's @dcfireems tweets were useful in a more basic way, too. They painted a broad picture of the work that emergency respondents in D.C. do every day. From the frequent (and no longer tweeted) "Ped struck" and "Cyclist struck" messages to the notes about downed trees, it was a reminder that things in this city don't stop when your commute ends. It's a shame, that in the process of "protecting" itself, the city's government is making even its good work less visible.

The Post editorial board weighs in on the practice of arresting those whose license plates have been expired for more than 30 days:

Make no mistake: No one should be driving with expired plates or a lapsed registration. Those who do — whether by oversight or commission — should be penalized. We recognize the legitimate police concern that unregistered vehicles can be a mask to hide other crimes. But aside from a 30-day grace period instituted by Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier, the law — which AAA Mid-Atlantic officials say is unique to the District — makes no allowance for people whose worst offense is bad record-keeping; other equally serious traffic violations are dealt with through appropriate administrative penalties. It also strikes us that police have better things to do with their time and manpower.

Photo by Jay Goodman Tamboli

The pop and crackle and confusion of D.C. police radio chatter this weekend made it apparent that local badges, like most other law enforcement, were doggedly chasing the terrible specter of terrorism because of the tenth anniversary of 9/11. In the wake of a "credible but unconfirmed" warning about al Qaeda detonating car bombs in D.C. and New York, patrols careened toward suspicious vans, loomed at bridges, and stalked two U-Haul trucks reported stolen from a lot in Prince George's County. All weekend, cops toiled in grueling twelve-hour "crime emergency" shifts—perhaps sensibly opposed by the Fraternal Order of Police because of the long hours and lack of overtime pay.

According to a tally of police arrest records, as a result of the stepped up enforcement, the authorities carted away 522 people. Those weren't 522 terrorists, however. Court records show there were crimes of poverty (a man allegedly shoplifted lotion, body wash, skin cleanser, razors, deodorant and bread from the Safeway on Piney Branch Road NW) and perversion (another man allegedly put his hand up the skirt of a woman on U Street). But though there was one man with the cagey last name of "Jihad" arrested for failing to appear at a court hearing, Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson Officer Araz Ali says MPD knew of no terror-related arrests made by District cops during the tense weekend.

That probably doesn't matter. In a statement, Police Chief Cathy Lanier suggests the crime emergency is really a Ray Kelly-style bid to intimidate terrorists rather than catch up with them: "Rest assured that we are paying very close attention to this threat and that we are doing everything in our power to ensure that Washington is not an attractive target to someone trying to do harm to our residents and visitors," she says. Lanier plans on continuing the emergency measures until "I am comfortable that the threat has decreased," so shoplifters and creeps—beware.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

Burton already has two civil suits pending against the department, both of which cast Lanier as anti-hero. One lawsuit contends that Lanier demoted Burton for no reason in 2007, though he was later promoted back to his previous rank, and the other that Lanier has been trying to purge the department of black males. You can bet that any new complaint Burton files will do the same.

Some recent friction between Lanier and Burton led to Burton testifying to the D.C. Council that Lanier and other top commanders were complicit in the arranging of unofficial police escorts for celebrities like Charlie Sheen. On Tuesday, Lanier announced that Burton had been demoted from his plum position as commander of Special Operations Division—which executed the controversial police escorts— to the much less sexy position of being a captain at the D.C. Police and Fire Clinic.

Lanier has said she slapped Burton down because of some of his command decisions. Burton says he was told by a superior that he was being demoted because he hadn't kept tabs on the maintenance of a tactical vehicle, because he was "overly aggressive" during a barricade situation, and because he wasn't "enthusiastic" enough about implementing a new overtime policy. Burton doesn't buy that, and neither does his attorney.

In an email to Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Paul Quander (also now Mayor Vince Gray's acting chief of staff), Burton's lawyer E. Scott Frison asserts the demotion was actually meant to send a message: Don't mess with the chief. "This latest retaliatory action taken by Chief Lanier against Commander Burton is intended to intimidate every sworn officer who might be predisposed to challenge Chief Lanier's biased approach to management."

Last month, Burton reminisced that he and Lanier were once eager rookies together: "We've known each other since we were officers, got promoted up the ranks together," he told me. The beefy cop seemed to be wondering how things had gone so wrong.

Eleven of the citations were given in predominantly black police districts east of the Anacostia River. Only one was issued in the Second Police District, which contains some of D.C.'s whitest neighborhoods. That snapshot of the District's criminal justice landscape would seem to reflect past statistics, which say black residents are eight times more likely to be arrested for sparking a blunt than their white counterparts.

That's despite the fact that the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use & Health says whites and blacks use marijuana at near equal rates: 9.6 percent of blacks 12 and older use pot, and 8.8 percent of whites.

One theory as to why black residents are apprehended on pot charges more often involves how the two populations both smoke and acquire their weed. Whites tend to light up and deal inside their homes, and blacks on the street, goes the thinking.

Court records for some of those arrested east of the river back that belief up. They describe vice officers spotting suspects engaging in open-air blazing or buying from street corner dealers. One subject "was walking down the street smoking a brown cigar" when cops spotted him. The recklessness involved would seem to disqualify disparate rates of marijuana arrests in the city as a civil rights issue: Black smokers are choosing to be flagrant about their pot use and so attracting the attention of cops who have no choice but to grab them.

But even if assumptions about smoking and dealing habits are solid, that doesn't mean there's no problem with the way marijuana laws are currently being enforced in black and white neighborhoods. Taking my own experience as an African American who grew up poor into account, I remember some family and friends who puffed outside—whether that involved a pack of Kools or a joint meticulously sculpted from Top rolling papers—out of respect for others in their household, particularly where there was more than one generation (and therefore more than one set of moral values) under one roof. Dealing inside the house would have been all the more inappropriate. Although that's certainly not the situation for every black person who tokes up or does a hand-off in Ward 7 or Ward 8, the idea is that you can't just assume they're being belligerent, and therefore asking for repercussions.

Police do seem to be obligated to arrest you once they catch a sight of a spliff, as a matter of policy in the District. Police Chief Cathy Lanier says her department isn't pushing marijuana arrests at this time, but if ”we encounter someone in possession of marijuana, we are obligated to make an arrest."

Still, there are plenty of crimes, like jaywalking (which gets sporadic enforcement) that cops regularly ignore, despite the law. When the crime is so minor and ubiquitous that making a big deal about it would do more harm than good, officers typically walk on.

The federal survey on drug stats says that marijuana use—which has been approved for medical purposes in the District—may be a misdemeanor, but it's certainly become ubiquitous. An "estimated 104 million Americans aged 12 or older have tried marijuana at least once in their lifetimes." I doubt law enforcement is interested in arresting all those people, so why swoop into black D.C.?

When black people bear the brunt of marijuana arrests, the prime suspect ends up being the country's teetering but still functional mechanism of racial oppression. The fix is obvious: Legalize marijuana, and the problem disappears. Or at least this manifestation of it does.

Photo by futureatlas.com via Creative Commons Attribution License 2.0

Despite the fact that, as this week's cover story points out, Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier enjoys widespread popularity among D.C. residents, some cops aren't as adoring. Anti-Lanier police I've talked to say she's too strict of a disciplinarian and that her stringent approach to control was famously showcased in 2000, when she was commander of the Fourth District.

When Lanier heard some scuttlebutt that her district's lieutenants were lazing about in their offices—and, rumor had it, sometimes having sex there—she chewed them out, say police sources, who asked for anonymity because they don't have permission to speak to the media.

That wasn't the end of it, though. When the cops came in the next day they found their offices a lot more airy. Their doors were gone. "She just didn't like not knowing what was going on," recalls a lieutenant who says he lost a door. The official says Lanier overreacted to what was nothing more than gossip. "She was blinded by anger," he says.

Lanier hasn't responded to inquiries about the story, but the tale has been passed around ("I did hear she did that,” says Assistant Police Chief Diane Groomes, a close Lanier ally) and could either represent Lanier as bully or no-nonsense reformer. Interestingly, that tension is reminiscent of tension inspired by the guy—or jerk—who installed her. Birds of a feather?

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

Assistant Chief Dianne Groomes was at the center of the allegations that Metropolitan Police Department officers cheated on mandatory exams last year. And now she's got something to say about it: She did it.

Groomes says she tried to help some police brass pass a 50-question test whose deadline was imminent.

That seems to contradict a statement Police Chief Cathy Lanier made to The Washington Post while clearing the popular Groomes of any wrongdoing in December: "Lanier said her decision came after an internal investigation concluded that Groomes did not 'compromise' the test. Rather, the internal probe found that the exam was an open-book test. 'No official obtained or shared the answer key,' Lanier said."

But Groomes says she certainly did compromise the test; she compromised the heck out of it. "I printed out the answers, and I sent them out," she says. "I sent it to them and said, 'Handle it.'"

Groomes says the answer sheet she used was available to her because she'd already taken the online exam. Even after City Desk gave Groomes an out by repeating the open-book test defense, the cop wouldn't take it: "Like I said, I did what I did."

She shouldn't have, she realizes, but Groomes sometimes doesn't think: "I react sometimes. I'm impulsive. I just react."

Groomes, who's ready to move on, says she was disciplined for her wrongdoing. "I know a lot of people think, 'You didn't get a reprimand in your jacket,'" she says. "I received an 'adverse action.'" An "adverse action" can be a demotion, a suspension, or a cut in pay.

Groomes says Commander Matthew Klein, who left his command post in the Second District around the time Groomes returned to her position as his superior, turned her in. "I guess he's very, very ethical," Groomes says of Klein.

Klein hasn't returned calls for comment.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

A D.C. Office of Inspector General investigation has concluded that the cops who gave Charlie Sheen a police escort through the District didn't screw up.  It's also concluded that it doesn't trust Sheen's Twitter feed.

In a report the OIG said non-dignitary escorts "have been routine for years." In June, two officers who participated in giving Sheen a "lights and siren" ride to an April gig were transferred out of the Special Operations Division, which was in charge of the transport. Sheen's unique tour of the District earned attention when he tweeted about it, showing a speedometer that read 80 mph.

The OIG isn't ready to accept that's how fast Sheen was actually going, and seems to take a shot at the media for considering a tweet a valid source of information. "Although various media publicized tweeted images and text purporting to show the Sheen SUV traveling at approximately 80 m.p.h., the team had no means by which to independently verify the authenticity and accuracy of either the information or its source." In other words: Myopic little twits!

Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier said Sheen's escort wasn't approved, but the OIG "concluded that SOD's approval and performance of the Sheen escort were not extraordinary. Similarly, the OIG does not view the decisions and actions of those SOD officers involved in the Sheen escort as cavalier or contrary to established practice."

The OIG did say, however, that the protocols for doing the escorts are a mess, and MPD should get a handle on them. As long as he's alive and healthy, Sheen may be happy to know that the District office thinks MPD should be able to offer him a ride again: "The OIG believes that if administered properly, non-dignitary escorts can deliver broad benefits to the District."

Photo by Matthew Straubmuller via Flickr/Creative Commons Attribution License 2.0

Always Low Prices On Guns: It turned out Walmart didn't need much of a hard sell to get D.C. government officials to welcome them to town; the only argument the city's really putting up so far is about whether they'll deign to give us four stores, or five, not about whether they'll do things like, oh, pay reasonable wages, not lock workers in the stores overnight, and generally avoid disrupting existing businesses. But one concession the Bentonville gang had made was that, in deference to the District's gun laws, their stores wouldn't sell firearms. Now the city seems to be trying to get them to undo that, too. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier says it "makes a lot of sense" for Walmart to sell guns in D.C. When can we just go ahead and rename the Wilson Building for Sam Walton? -3

The Name Game: Some Metro stations have easy names—think "Metro Center," or "Dupont Circle." Others have complicated ones, like "Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan," or "Vienna/Fairfax-GMU." The complicated names may be on their way out; Metro officials have decided to lop off most add-ons and relegate them to subtitles, based on a series of focus groups with riders. Meanwhile, the Washington Nationals still want to add a curly "W" to the Navy Yard station on the Green Line, which riders liked. Must have done the focus groups during the recent winning streak. +2

Federal Express: Typically, it's considered bad news when any top city officials are under investigation by federal authorities. Here in D.C., we've got a whole bunch. Council Chairman Kwame "Fully Loaded" Brown's 2008 campaign finance reports have been referred to the FBI and federal prosecutors; the feds are already looking into allegations against Mayor Vince Gray (though we suspect that investigation isn't going anywhere) and Ward 5 Councilmember Harry Thomas Jr., and they tried to bribe Ward 1's Jim Graham already, too. At this rate, they'll be able to get a quorum together at the FBI headquarters. -3

The Future... Is Now: Trains on Metrorail have looked like relics from the 1970s since, well, the 1970s. So it'll take some getting used to the fancy new design officials unveiled today. Gone are the orange and yellow seats and brown carpets, replaced by blue seats and dark stone-looking floors. The new trains will roll out in the next two to five years. The system is also allowing riders to add money to their SmarTrip cards online, instead of having to use the farecard machines in stations to do it. Lest we all be overwhelmed by too much progress too fast, that one's just a pilot program for now. +2

Yesterday's Needle rating: 52 Today's score: -2 Today's Needle rating: 50

The D.C. police commander who suggested that chauffeuring celebrities like Charlie Sheen around has been "standard operating procedure"  for his department for years says he's in trouble.

Commander Hilton Burton says he's been "ostracized" by other police officials. He also says that, last week, Internal Affairs officers questioned him for a second time regarding Sheen's law enforcement shepherding. Burton was first questioned when an internal police investigation into Sheen's ride began in April. Burton heads up the division that provides police escorts.

Burton says during this most recent interview, he got the distinct impression from his questioners that they were preparing to make allegations against him in connection to Sheen. Burton declined to say what he thought those allegations might be.
In June, Burton attended a D.C. Council hearing on Sheen's unapproved motorcade, which MPD has said violated policy. Sheen revealed his special ride by tweeting about it. At the hearing, Burton testified that though two mid-level MPD officials were blamed for arranging such lifts, MPD's top commanders, including Chief Cathy Lanier, knew all about the cop-run taxi service.

Lanier told reporters after the hearing that Burton's testimony was inaccurate and that she thought he was merely using a "tactic" to avoid the prospect of future discipline for the Sheen episode.

Burton tells City Desk his motivations were pure: “I saw the opportunity to right a wrong."

Photo by Matthew Straubmuller via Flickr/Creative Commons Attribution License 2.0