Petworth residents are perturbed by a possible new round of gang warfare that broke out in their hood hours after the Red Line crash. Just before midnight Jun. 22, police say, there was a double shooting on the 600 block of Quebec Place, N.W. A woman suffered a gunshot wound to the leg and a man – who police believe was shot at the scene and fled in a car that crashed – later died of his injuries, Ward 4 Councilwoman Muriel Bowser told her constituents yesterday.

About three hours later, police responded to an apparent shootout on the 500 block of Shepherd Street, N.W. They reported finding cars riddled with bullet holes but no victims.

Bowser says police are investigating a link between the two incidents as a “suspected gang beef.”

Monday night’s wee-hour gunplay was just the latest street violence in Petworth and prompted a new round of recriminations over the D.C. Council’s failure to pass legislation aimed at cracking down on the city’s allegedly growing gang problem.

“Having lived in petworth my entire life and having seen Petworth at its worst, all I am simply saying is lets come up with solutions period! Whether a neighborhood beef or a gang or just someone randomly in the neighborhood shooting. It all needs to stop. We already know the problems in the area lets do something about it,” Roneal Josephs posted to the MPD-4D Listserv. His was one of several comments on the shootings.

Elsewhere in the city, debate also continues over the crime bill torpedoed earlier this month over concerns that the proposed measures could lead to racial profiling. The Washington Post had a story Monday quoting “youths” who say they need more and better extracurricular activities to lure them away from the streets.

But how to create successful programs is an ongoing challenge in D.C. and around the country. Anyone who works with teenagers knows getting them to consistently show up for structured and constructive afterschool time is an uphill battle. It’s a well-known fact that nonprofit organizations often end up vying for the same pool of kids willing to give these activities a try. Sadly, the ones who choose to participate rather than hang unsupervised on the streets are not necessarily the ones most “at risk” for gangster life.

When I was a reporter covering gangs in the Boston area a few years ago, a high school principal made an observation that gets to the heart of the matter: He said combating the spread of gangs is like fighting against the tide. Every year, a new generation rolls in.

Good morning, City Desk readers. Your news:

• Yesterday on the MPD-4D listserv, Petworth residents tossed around the idea that the wave of violence had come to an end (or that everyone who cared had moved away), but it looks like they spoke too soon. Police are now looking for a black pick-up truck that shot at two cars last night near Farragut St. NW.
• Pop Cesspool gives his "first thumbs-down" to a Facebook ad.
• Every rag in DC has an "Inauguration Guide"–Washington City Paper's is the one you should use.
• From WaPo: Not to be outdone by PG County, Montgomery County is enacting some far-reaching legislation of its own, which will put an end to "mansionization." (Imagine someone at the planning office holding his thumb and finger close together and saying, "Your house can only be this big.")
• Also in WaPo: American kids are still "just ok" at science.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery.

In conjunction with the investigation into the murder of Michael and Virginia Spevak, ABC 7 reports that D.C. Police discovered a safe and computer during yesterday's search of the backyard and alley behind 622 Ingraham St. NW.

A neighbor also found a charred ID belonging to Dr. Spevak in the alley.

Inspector Rodney Parks, addressing the press yesterday at the scene of the investigation, refused to confirm or deny the discovery of a computer. "Items were taken," he told us, "and burglary appears to be the motive. But we haven’t ruled out anything else."

NBC is also reporting the discovery of a safe.

Photograph above: D.C. Police package evidence in the Ingraham alley on 11/24/08

This afternoon in the backyard of 622 Ingraham Street NW, police found evidence relating to the murder of Michael and Virginia Spevak . The house is less than twenty yards from the spot where the Spevaks' blue 2005 Scion was torched in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Officers have brought in four of the house's residents for questioning and are preparing to execute a search warrant on 622.

Inspector (soon to be Commander) Rodney Parks, head of the homicide unit, wouldn't release too many details to the press, but said that a patrol car showed up responding to a tip, and that detectives and crime scene units arrived shortly thereafter. Cops spent several hours combing the yard, the porch, and a dump truck parked behind the house for clues.

"I can say that there is an obvious forensic link indicating that the items are associated with the car," Parks said. "It's too early to tell how the items relate to the vehicle."

Among the items police packaged in orange evidence bags were two folding chairs. Parks wouldn't comment on how the chairs related to the investigation.

Police led the four interviewees away from the scene—two in a marked cruiser, two in an unmarked sedan. Nobody was in handcuffs, and Parks would not release the interviewees' names.

"You may have damaged their willingness to talk to us," Parks chided camera crews who had rushed to film the departure. "We did not want to expose them as any connection to the case."

Neighbors say that 622 Ingraham is known to pack a crowd, with a number of teens and twenty-somethings in and out of residence there. Police said there was no indication of an association between the Spevaks and the residents of 622.

As for motive, Parks said that several missing items from the Spevaks' house suggested burglary—"But we haven't ruled out anything else."

Still no word as to whether Dr. Spevaks' psychiatric work with troubled teens, or Mrs. Spevaks' foster work, had anything to do with the brutal murders.

ADDENDUM: MPD is really trumpeting this, so what the hell:

The Metropolitan Police Department is currently offering a reward of up to $50,000 to anyone that provides information which leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons wanted for these homicides committed in the District of Columbia.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Anthony Greene on (202) 645-5452 or (202) 607-8268 (cell), or contact police at (202) 727-9099 or 1-888-919-CRIM [E].

The Politico's Ben Smith threw up the MPD's community outreach flier on his blog today, but made one huge mistake in his write-up:

The Washington, D.C. police department launched a new initiative with a familiar slogan today, hoping to bring the sense of national change to urban youth.

The "No Shots Fired" initatiative "encourages youth to have a peaceful gunfire-free weekend," according to the press release.

The "No Shots Fired" initiative began–and ended–this past weekend. And those fliers? They were handed out in Petworth on Friday and Saturday nights, at the MPD's questionable checkpoints on Kennedy Street (I have two at home, along with a sheet detailing recently-solved homicides, which MPD officers were handing out to drivers after they questioned them over unbuckled seatbelts and outstanding tickets). The press release for the initiative, part of phase IV of "All Hands on Deck," went out Friday afternoon.

Smith's view on the flier's Obama-esque "hopefulness" is also interesting:

There are all sorts of hopes about cultural pivots that Obama's election may produce; immediate effects on crime rates seems a particularly ... hopeful one.

I don't know how much time Smith spends in the economically down-trodden parts of DC, but I'd wager that he's not a Petworth regular. Invoking Obama in tandem with random searches and foot patrols of jumpy police recruits isn't likely to dissuade the targets of a ruthless drug war from doing what they have to do to survive.

Police are mounting a full-scale investigation after the brutal murder last night of an elderly couple in Chevy Chase, D.C.

The victims, identified as Dr. Michael Spevak and Virginia Spevak, had been bound and brutalized after an apparent break-in. Their car—a 2005 blue Toyota Scion—was discovered this morning around 5 a.m. in the 500 block of Ingraham Street, NW, swathed in flames.

More below the jump, including photos, updates, and the official police statement.

From police spokesperson Traci Hughes:

For Immediate Release
November 23, 2008
Homicide in the 5000 block of Belt Road, NW

The Metropolitan Police Department is currently investigating a homicide which occurred in the 5000 block of Belt Road, NW .

At approximately 8:30 PM, members of the Second District responded to 5000 block of Belt Road, NW, for a radio assignment to check on the welfare of two residents.

Upon their arrival, authorities located Dr. Michael Spevak, age 68, and Virginia Spevak, age 67. Both victims were pronounced dead on the scene by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The victims’ remains were transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner pending autopsy to determine cause of death.

On Sunday, November 23, 2008, at approximately 5 AM, the victims’ 2005 Toyota Scion bearing DC Tag CB5335 was recovered in the 500 block of Ingraham St. NW. The vehicle had been set on fire.

This case remains under investigation by detectives from the department’s Homicide and Sexual Offenses Branch. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call police at (202) 727-9099 or 1-888-919-CRIM [E].

Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to DC Crime Solvers at 1-800-673-2777 and to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by text messaging 50411. If the information provided by the caller to the Crime Solvers Unit leads to an arrest and indictment, that caller will be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

Brian Nelson, City Paper's Network Administrator, wrote the following to me in an email this morning:

An officer knocked on our door at 4:30am this morning looking for any witnesses. The fire dept had just put out a burning car in our alley (Between 7th and 5th/Hamilton and Ingraham NW) which had been involved in a double homicide in 2D.... They've since towed the car.

By the time I arrived to take photos this afternoon, all that remained was the rubble you're seeing: shards of class, springs and sprockets toasted to a crisp, melted wiring, tire vestiges seared into the cement. The blaze was hot enough to melt a nearby trash can.

Updates forthcoming.

UPDATE: The MPD is flooding the neighborhood with recruits. They can be heard yelling "HOORAH."

UPDATE: According to Officer R. Mullins, the MPD is conducting "a routine walk-through," something it does "every four to five months" using recruits from the police academy. Mullins said three classes are out tonight, or about 75 recruits, plus various commanding officers.

UPDATE: According to a release that went out to the MPD-4D listserv around 2 p.m., Mayor Fenty is calling tonight's MPD activities "City-wide All Hands on Deck Phase IV." In addition to the MPD maintaining checkpoints and conducting foot patrols, "homicide detectives [will be] following up with victims." No word yet on whether said follow-ups will involve members of DC's medium community.

• Lt. James A. Cullen posted on the MDP-4D listserv that the 17 year old who was shot while near the 700 block of Decatur St. NW was treated and released from the hospital. Cullen also said that a "white Lexus sedan" may have been involved in the incident. According to Linda Brown, MPD Commander of the Fourth District, police are responding with gusto to the most recent shooting on Kennedy St. (which City Paper missed): "Our attention is continually focused in the 600-700 blocks of Jefferson, Kennedy and Longfellow.  We have executed several search warrants in this target area in the last few days in an effort to bring this gun violence to an end."
• Looking to rent out your place for inauguration but worried about getting busted for violating housing regulations? Fear not! According to The Washington Post Mayor Adrian M. Fenty decided yesterday to suspend "requirements for property inspections...from Jan. 13 through 27," as well as various other obstacles to renting out one's futon in Brightwood Park. (*Ahem* We have wireless Internet, folks! And the place is clean! *Ahem*) The last obstacle is the landlord. (Don't hold your breath for Fenty to suspend other pointless laws, the kind that do nothing to curb the behaviors they criminalize and generate less money than is required to enforce them.)
• Twilight, the vampire movie every chick wants to see, opens tonight. Critics have mixed opinions. Moviegoers should prepare themselves for violent hordes of XX's, ranging from 13 to 30 years of age, all of them screaming for the blood of Robert Pattinson. Check out Washington City Paper's showtimes for other movie listings.
• Prince of Petworth has a question for you.
• Calling all nerds: New FreakAngels, new Marriedtothesea, and new Penny-Arcade. Check them out now.

A few minutes after 11 p.m. tonight, a young woman was shot in the 700 block of Decatur Street, NW.

The victim sustained injuries to her left arm and is not in in critical condition, police say. She is seventeen years old.

Police tape also demarcated a house at the intersection of 7th and Emerson Streets to which the victim fled after being attacked.

By the time we arrived, an ambulance was on the scene. By the time we left, cops were pulling down yellow tape on Emerson while their colleagues three blocks south scoured the ground for overlooked shells.

The shots I could hear from my porch nearly a mile away.

We'll do our best to keep you in the loop.

Photograph of Decatur St. & Illinois Ave. by Mike Riggs

Check out the video:

"The last three or four days have been pretty gruesome," Jarrell said in his opening remarks. Fourth District Commander Linda Brown agreed, calling the past weekend "a little brutal."

"We've saturated the area," Brown said. "We've questioned a number of people, and we're trying to weed through what testimony is true and what's wrong."

Brown also expressed confidence that forensic analysis of the 9mm shells found on the Georgia and Crittenden scenes would lead to a more definitive link, and alluded to a meeting with Bowser to ensure maintaining that police presence in and around the scenes.

Officers present also confirmed a second fatality from the weekend: a body found in the park on 13th and Emerson Streets, NW. In the Emerson case, though, police say there is no sign of suspicious activity. We're still waiting on autopsy results.

"All indications point to a natural death," said Lt. Jude Waddy of the fourth district vice unit. "There was no trauma to the body."

Manlapaz offered a few new details on the weekend's violence. The victim gunned down on the 4500 block of Georgia on Saturday night around 9 p.m., Manlapaz said, had been in and out of jail, and was arrested most recently on the 800 block of Crittenden.

"Based on geography and the people we've seen involved, we're looking at neighborhood rivalries," Manlapaz said, stating with "reasonable certainty" that the shootings on Georgia and Crittenden constituted "retaliatory violence" on the part of dealers seeking more operable turf.

Manlapaz also offered qualified optimism, observing that of sixteen homicides in the fourth district since january, "four are closed and two are on their way." (Eleven of the sixteen, he says, involved firearms. The average age of the victims was twenty-four.)

Mendelson, chair of the D.C. Council’s committee on public safety and the judiciary (on which Bowser also serves), discussed a three-pronged legislative approach to handgun crime in light of District of Columbia v. Heller: clarifying the law vis-à-vs operable and inoperable weapons, relegislating gun registration requirements, and looking into a proposal by the mayor to make it a crime to discharge a firearm.

The MPD has pulled almost 3,000 guns off the street so far this year.

Mendelson also discussed using programs like Gunstat to identify "cracks in the system" that enable repeat offenders.

One woman expressed outrage with recent cuts to the MPD budget. (In an email to me, Jason Shedlock, Special Assistant to Mendelson, characterized them as "spending freezes.") Another woman complained that police were unresponsive to a series of calls on Saturday.

"At 1 a.m. on Saturday there were shots fired in my yard, and nobody showed up except for the Hands Together Neighborhood Club," she said. "We saw gunflashes. It was terrifying. And not one officer came until the next afternoon."

"I am not a very happy taxpayer," she added. "And I do not want this neighborhood to turn into the wild wild West."

Lieutenant Brown promised to investigate the slow response and to get back to the woman "before the evening's up."

Citing her tenure as Fourth District Commander, Lanier countered complaints from residents that the Marlboro block constitutes an undersurveilled, "hot" zone.

"Marlboro is a quiet street," she insisted. "When I was here, Marlboro was the test. It's a short block, and very quiet. If you're a rookie cop, and you know where Marlboro is, then you're good enough to be certified."

Lanier reminded residents that the MPD presence wasn't only about the uniforms. Equally important are the plainclothesmen.

"We have to have visible uniforms to send the message," she said. "But when you don't see the response, it's because you're not supposed to see the response. The vice unit's all over that area. We're making strong headway—and you'll see the results of that very shortly."

Several residents objected that a visible police presence only displaces the dealers and results in fresh pockets of territorial violence. Lanier acknowledged the pattern.

"Every time we have a success, we have a new problem," Lanier said.

***

MORE FROM PETWORTH:

The ANC 4-C November meeting is tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. in the community room of the MPD Patrol Services Bureau on Shepherd Street.

The cops are touting their new anonymous text-tip number: 50411 ("Give 5-0 the 411," as they say). 1-888-919-CRIME remains the phone tip-off line.

Lt. Waddy is taking drug-related tip calls at work (202-715-7501) and on his cell (202-497-1401).

Because they'll probably be airing some repurposed City Desk footage, alongside an interview with me.

No promises.  But tune in to find out.

Then a lady came running towards us. She had a warning for us.

Something about a dog on the loose.

She ran into the Yum's. We saw the dog—a pit bull. And yes, I admit, I scurried into the Yum's. Ted, I admit, played it cool. Even though they were safe inside, people screamed some more. I may or may not have screamed like an eight-year-old.

Eventually, I calmed down enough. Ted got some footage of the pit bull. For City Desk. We are very brave. We should be given an award or a free lunch.

We also captured the musings of one Petworth resident about pit bulls, a recent stabbing, violence in general, the police, and Obama:

Trouble viewing? Try the YouTube version.

Video by Ted Scheinman

Trouble viewing? Try the YouTube version.

Video by Ted Scheinman

Last night, we decided to factcheck Lanier's promise. We saw one cop on Marlboro Place. He sat in his idling cruiser, his laptop set to his AOL account. Georgia and Allison was quiet. At 8th and Crittenden, we saw only an empty cruiser parked up the block. We decided to wait and see if any real cops would ever show up.

We listened to reggae in our Corolla. We ran out of small talk. We swapped college stories. We got excited when a cab pulled up. We watched neighbors parallel park. And we got real bored and real cold. Watch:

Trouble viewing? Try the YouTube version.

Video by Ted Scheinman