There was a day and age when it cost 10-cents to make a phone call. There was also an ad campaign featuring McGruff The Crime Dog, who told people across this country if they wanted to stop crime they had to report it to police.
Today we have cell phones, 911 and police and sheriff’s deputies who can be on the spot in minutes. A lot of things have changed since McGruff The Crime Dog was on patrol.
With that said your Clarksdale Press Register watched Clarksdale Police Chief Robbie Linley beg his community to call police when they see something suspicious.
“If you see something, say something,” said Linley at Monday’s city board meeting. “Help me help you take your neighborhood back.”
Linley was born and raised in Clarksdale and is a graduate of Clarksdale High School. He started working for the Clarksdale Police Department in September 1997 and it is the only police department he has ever worked for.
This professional police officer praised his department and the 60-hour week most of his men work.
“I’m going to give it everything I have to turn this thing around,” Linley promised.
Your Clarksdale Press Register wants to point out you can’t buy that kind of determination and dedication.
We urge the community -- especially the African American community -- to get behind our police, report suspicious activity and talk to officers they know when they hear about gang activity and drugs in their neighborhood.
This newspaper understands the fear of gangs found in Clarksdale right now. But the only way this town will restore law and order is to band together and sweep these thugs and drug-dealers off our streets.
We had an off duty police officer take a bullet for this community last week because he swore to uphold the laws of the State of Mississippi and protect the people of Clarksdale from law breakers any time, any where.
Police know they are paid to do the hard thing. All the community has to do is point them in the right direction and support them when they do their job.
Clarksdale can be a great place to live if people will have courage and call the cops.
