Liveliest D.C. Neighborhoods Also Jumping With Robberies

Yasmin Wei, 19, can attest to that. One night recently, a man knocked her to the ground as she was returning to her Columbia Heights apartment after an art class. He slammed his foot sharply into her ribs and yanked fiercely at her bag, dragging her along the sidewalk. Finally, he jerked the bag free and ran off. Wei had a deep gash on her elbow and a bruise the size of a grapefruit on her hip.

"It was right under a streetlight," said Wei, who works as a waitress in Adams Morgan. "And it was only 9:30."

Wei said the attack was so terrifying that she no longer feels comfortable in the neighborhood and has moved in with her parents. "I don't even want to bike there after 8 p.m.," she said.

Robbers choose streets where people are likely to have cash, bank cards and cellphones. They prey on those who appear isolated, and the less lighting, the better. Dozens of police reports describe how robbers sneak up, grab a purse or bag, and flee -- the snatch-and-run. Other victims tell of robbers approaching them at gunpoint with such lines as "Give it up" and "You know what time it is."

A 19-year-old food vendor, held up while walking home from RFK Stadium, remembers exactly what the gunman told him: "I don't want no drama." The robber ran off with the man's wallet, containing two $20 bills.

Resistance Is Risky

Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey said he worries about the potential for lethal violence. "It can quickly escalate to a shooting or homicide if the victim resists or if the robber is jumpy," he said.

The chief declared a crime emergency in July, and since then, the number of robberies has tapered off and is running about the same as last year. Preliminary statistics show that there were 2,898 robberies in the city as of Sept. 30.

The situation is worse than it was two years ago but much better than in the 1980s and early 1990s, when the city was averaging almost 20 robberies a day. That's little comfort to residents. As Ramsey put it, "Robbery is a good indicator of violence on our neighborhood streets," and it "provokes a great deal of fear."

Said council member Adrian M. Fenty (D-Ward 4), who likely will succeed Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) next year: "Nothing is of greater concern to residents, and nothing makes them think twice about living in their neighborhoods more than if they don't feel safe walking around."

Police warn that trying to resist a robber is risky -- as one victim recently learned. He was stopped in the 1400 block of Morris Road SE by a robber who jabbed a gun into his side. The gun went off after the victim slapped the robber's hand. The victim, 20, was shot in the thigh.

Drugs and robberies are intertwined. Last week, Ramise Cannon was sentenced to a six-year prison term after pleading guilty to committing robberies at an ATM in Southwest Washington and on a busy street in Southeast, crimes that netted him a total of $110. Cannon, 18, told the judge that he needed help for a drug problem -- a common refrain heard at sentencing time. "I'm sorry to the victims. I know what I did was wrong," Cannon said. "I hope they have space in their hearts to forgive me."

Investigators find that robbers will go out on the streets, sometimes in groups of two or three, and rob several people in one night or on consecutive nights in the same area. The more they do, the bolder they get. They spend victims' cash quickly, run up their charge cards and use their cellphones.