October 15, 2025 • 33 mins
Tune in here to this Wednesday's edition of Breaking With Brett Jensen!
Breaking Brett Jensen kicks the show off by talking about the latest crime statistics released by CMPD and the growing role of public perception in shaping how residents feel about safety in Charlotte. The department held a press conference earlier in the day, highlighting an overall 8% drop in crime and a 20% reduction in violent crime through the first three quarters of 2025. Jensen plays a key portion of the press conference, urging listeners to note how often the word “perception” is used by CMPD officials.
Later Jensen digs into the second half of CMPD’s press conference on the latest crime stats — and doesn’t hold back. He challenges city officials on the disconnect between public “perception” and the reality of rising crime, especially in Uptown Charlotte. With murders up 200% and violent crimes increasing across the board in the Central Division, Brett demands straight answers on why CMPD continues to frame the issue as one of perception.
Jensen is joined by Krista Bokharii to discuss her campaign for Charlotte City Council in District 6 and the issues she believes are holding the city back. A strong advocate for transparency and accountability, Bakari criticizes what she calls wasteful spending by current leadership — pointing to high-dollar payouts, the proposed $1.5 million for the private Excelsior Club, and a general lack of fiscal responsibility.
Jensen ends the night with an exclusive 1-on-1 interview with James Bowers to discuss his campaign for Charlotte City Council in District 3 and his vision for restoring safety, transparency, and trust in city leadership. Bowers, a passionate advocate for public safety, criticized the current council for what he called poor decisions and a lack of accountability, particularly when it comes to crime and police staffing.
Listen here for all of this and more on Breaking With Brett Jensen.
To be the first to hear about Breaking Brett Jensen's exclusives and more follow him on X @Brett_Jensen!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Hi, Oh, let's go.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Oh, let's go, Oh, let's.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Go, Let's go. The News Talking Letter ten and ninety
nine three WBT Brett Jensen here with you on this
Wednesday edition of Breaking with Brett Jensen as we go
up until seven o'clock tonight. Telephone number seven oh four
five seven eleven ten. That's also the WBT text line,
driven of course by Liberty Buick GMC and guys, make
(00:50):
sure you follow me on EXCEP Bret Underscore Jensen for
all the lettuce and breaking news in and around the
Charlotte area.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
And we have got a lot to get into tonight.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
A lot of things is going on with the CNPD
press conferences, and I got a couple of candidates running
for city council who will be joining me later on
tonight as well. But we're going to start tonight with
CMPD having a press conference this morning at ten thirty
to talk about the crime stats through the third quarter.
Now they say the third quarter of crime stats, they're not.
They're through the third quarter. They're not just the third
(01:21):
quarter of crime stats because that would not probably look
too well for a CMPD. But these are the crime
stats through the first three quarters. Through September thirtieth. So
what you're going to do is your first part. This
is going to be a two part thing. The first
part is you're going to hear them make all their statements.
Pay close attention to how many times they use the
(01:42):
word perception. Now I had to edit it down a
little bit so we could get a lot of this
in here. But I want you to hear their opening
statements talking about violent crime being down across the city
and crime overall being down across the city.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
So here's how that went.
Speaker 4 (01:56):
Good morning.
Speaker 5 (01:57):
My name is Crystal Fletcher. I'm a lieutenant with the
Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department in the Public Affairs Division. Thank
you all for joining us here today. Today we're releasing
third quarter crime statistics covering January through September of twenty
twenty five.
Speaker 4 (02:13):
Thanks to the.
Speaker 5 (02:14):
Collective efforts of our officers and our community partners, overall
crime is down eight percent. Violent crime has declined twenty percent.
This is the third quarter in a row that we've
seen that downward trend. Violent crime includes homicides, rapes, robberies,
(02:35):
aggravated assaults, which include shootings. One of the most encouraging
trends within this category is a twenty four percent reduction
in homicides so far this year. There have been sixty
two homicides in the first three quarters of this year
compared to eighty two last year. While this is a
(02:57):
notable decrease, sixty two two homicides are still too many.
Disagreements should never end in tragedy. Violence should never be
the option, regardless of your beliefs, your background, or your circumstances.
Yet too often reckless decisions end in tragedy, leaving families
(03:19):
to grieve the loss of their loved ones. Our detectives
remain relentless in pursuing justice on their behalf. Thanks to
the tireless dedication of our detectives, eighty percent of homicides
year to date have been cleared by arrest. Homicides will
rightfully capture headlines, but they are only one part of
(03:42):
the story. Property crime has also fallen five percent compared
to the same time frame last year, showing progress on
multiple fronts. Property crime includes burglaries, auto thefts.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
And larcenies.
Speaker 5 (03:59):
While these numbers are trending in the right direction, we
know data alone can't capture the real impact. Crime has
on victims and their families. If you are the victim
of a crime, or you know someone who has been victimized,
it can shape your perception of Charlotte safety and Charlotte
In reality, overall and violent crime have both declined significantly. However,
(04:24):
high profile incidents and the influence of social media can
distort public perception, making crime seem more prevalent than it
truly is. First up to speak will be Deputy Chief
Jackie Briley.
Speaker 4 (04:39):
I'm Deputy Chief Jackie Briley. I'm over our patrol operations
for CMPD. On a daily and a nightly basis. Our
patrol officers respond to novel one calls. These calls can
consist of emergencies, traffic concerns, violent and property crimes, as
well as quality of life concerns in our neighbors. Our
(05:01):
officers are focused on keeping Charlotte safe, preventing and reducing victimization,
and strengthening our bond between CMPD and the people who
live and work in our community. Patrol officers are the
most visible and the most vital part of our job.
They're in our communities, they're building relationships, their detern crime,
(05:23):
and they're providing services to our Charlotte residents. Every day,
our officers intervene in minor and large disputes, they stop
crimes in progress, and they prevent violence without it ever
making the news yere. Today, CMPDS had over seven hundred
thousand nominal one calls with over four hundred thousand police interactions.
(05:46):
That means over four hundred thousand times so far this year,
a CMPD officer is interacted with someone living, working, or
visiting Charlotte. The proactive work done by our officers are
reflected in our activity. Our officer initiated efforts are up
eighteen percent, our gun seizures alone are up twenty five
percent with three thousand, one hundred and sixty seven I
(06:09):
legal farms seized so far, and additionally, our arrest are
up fifteen percent. While we consider these increases progress, we
know violent and property crime continues to be on the
minds of our citizens. Robberies and aggravated assaults, including shootings,
can deeply impact a sense of safety in our neighborhoods.
(06:31):
These crimes have lasting effects on our victims and the
perception of crime in our city. Knowing the substantial impact
of robberies and aggravated assaults. CMPD remains steadfast and proactively
addressing these areas. The stats reflect a continued decline in
these categories through the third quarter. During this period, robberies
(06:52):
have dropped by twenty two percent and aggravated assaults by
nineteen percent compared to the same time last year. These
are the results that reflect consistent behind the scene efforts
that make a real impact. While these numbers we share
today reflect our entire city, spanning all thirteen divisions in
our airport, we recognize the recent events, mainly in our
(07:15):
Central Division, have captured national tension, shaping the perceptions of
safety in our city. Our Central Division, which encompasses Uptown,
covers four point two square miles that's less than one
percent of our entire jurisdiction. We recently spent some time
in our Central Division during a community walk the block event.
(07:35):
We started at around eleven forty five pm and went
to about two thirty am, checking lighting, discussing concerns with
some of the community members, and highlighting the great work
being done by our officers and our partners. That experience
reaffirmed how making proactive policing and community engagement are making
a real difference. Building on that energy and recognizing that
(07:56):
violent instances and disturbances sometimes can occur in our busiest
entertainment areas, we took some steps to re implement our
Entertainment District Unit and a new initiative created by the
Central Division, the Crown Initiative.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
All right, so that's the first part. Like I said,
I had to edit some of it to make it
all fit. So when we come back, you're going to
hear the question and answer part, including some of the
very pointed questions that I asked and Katy sold from
WBTV asked about.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
Certain things and certain crime.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
But I hope you paid attention to all that stuff,
and we're going to hit do some highlights and remind
you certain things that they just said when I asked
my questions in a little bit. So all that's coming
up next and again my questions were very pointed and
very direct. So all that's coming up next.
Speaker 6 (08:51):
Week.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
About to breaking with Brett Jensen here on this Wednesday night. Okay,
So you heard the press conference that use the word
perception about four or five times and so, and they've
done it in the previous press conferences in the last
week and talk about perception and the perception. Well, I mean,
let's be honest. The perception is, well, Charlotte's unsafe. How
(09:12):
about reality. If Charlotte's so safe, then why are the
Charlotte Business Partners getting together to actually talk about safety
and coming up with a plan for safety in uptown? Well,
I pretty much asked that question right out of the gate,
and you're gonna hear the questions like these are the
q and as, and I asked some very pointed questions
specifically about the crime in uptown. So here's the second
(09:36):
part of this whole thing with CMPD this morning, and
this part is the press conference part.
Speaker 7 (09:41):
So we've saw a.
Speaker 8 (09:42):
Lot about the status and we saw these statistics.
Speaker 9 (09:44):
The paististics don't tell the whole story.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
My question is about public perception.
Speaker 8 (09:48):
We still feeling unsafe with these high profile cases and
an increasing push for federal intervention. What's your response to
those residents who are looking towards that federal intervention.
Speaker 4 (10:00):
So in reference to federal intervention, I can't really I
don't have a response. And I know we work with
our federal partners to present as many cases as we
can with our task force that we work. Like we
said earlier, we don't minimize people's feelings of unsafe. Anytime
(10:20):
someone's a victim of a crime, that's a violation. Like
you said on the slot earlier, with one hundred and
eleven events or arrest and fifty five of those being
property crimes, that's fifty five victims of a crime. That's
fifty five people's cars who was broken into. That's a violation.
And so we take that serious, and we know that
(10:42):
we want people to feel safe, and we understand that
that's their reality, so we don't minimize that. And that's
why we're trying to do everything we can to really
go after the individuals that are creating a large amount
of these incidents in our area. Our goal is to
try to make sure that we put the right people
(11:03):
in the right places.
Speaker 8 (11:05):
So does the city need the national gut?
Speaker 4 (11:07):
I can't. I know that our officers are proud of
the work that they do right and so I know
that they take pride in the work that they do
every day in Charlotte. We don't have any stance on
this requesting of a national guard. That is something that
was not requested by CMPD due to the chief.
Speaker 7 (11:27):
So clearly a word that you guys are being told
to use is perception. Let's talk a little bit about reality.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Reality.
Speaker 7 (11:35):
In the Central Division, murders are up two hundred percent.
Violent crimes across the board and the Central Division are
through the route drug interactions and drug crimes are way higher.
So that's the reality.
Speaker 4 (11:46):
Part of it.
Speaker 7 (11:48):
Eighteen thousand more interactions, gun seizures up twenty five percent,
as well as the arrestaurant of fifteen percent across the board.
So if that's the case, logical's to dictate that they're
either way more violent criminals and way more criminals and shot,
or you guys are just doing a better job of
arresting people. So which one is it. You've got all
(12:12):
those extra numbers, So there's got to be the reason
why all those extra numbers, Right, there's either way more
criminals or you guys are doing a better job.
Speaker 4 (12:19):
I mean, I think we've discussed it multiple times. As
our city continues to grow, we're going to have more
influx of people. Our uptown is built for nightlife. People
don't just come from Charlotte to come to our uptown
in our center city to enjoy themselves. They come from
all over the region. And so unfortunately, what we're seeing
(12:40):
is as Crystal stated earlier, when someone gets into a
disagreement in a bar or a nightclub, they go back
out to their car, they get into a shooting. That's
why we're telling people, don't bring your guns, don't leave
them unsecure, don't leave them in the car. That's why
we're focusing in those areas. Unfortunately, alcohol and guns, people
don't make good decisions. And there are some things that
(13:01):
we're trying to prevent that's in our control. And there
are some things that if people are going to resort
to guns to settle a petty argument, that's hard to prevent.
Speaker 1 (13:10):
So crime is.
Speaker 7 (13:11):
Clearly up in Uptown, clearly across the board. How long
would it take for Uptown to be maybe as safe
as Self Division or Deprofence Division or other divisions that
are out there. How long is that going to take
to eradicate a lot of the crime that's.
Speaker 6 (13:28):
Going on and there a back to what it was.
Speaker 4 (13:30):
I mean, I don't think we can put a number
or a timeframe on how long. I know that the
efforts are going to continue, Like we said, we're going
to continue with our Crown initiative to almost have almost
a zero tolerance when it comes to some of the
quality of life issues and some of the issues around
our bars and our nightclubs. So there's not a time
frame on that. We're just going to continue to push
and press and again work with the District Attorney's office
(13:52):
and work with our community partners to make sure that
we make some lasting impacts, because again, if we can
take one person who may be committing fire to impart
ones in one night off the street, that's going to
impact our numbers.
Speaker 9 (14:04):
Deputy Chief, is there a reason you all stop the
weekly crime stats back in August? We haven't seen a
weekly crime staff report.
Speaker 5 (14:10):
In several months.
Speaker 4 (14:11):
I don't run the that's a PIO question. They can
follow up with you on that, And.
Speaker 9 (14:16):
Just from a public city standpoint, and there a lot
of people curious the timing was right after the light
reel staff and seemingly no weekly crime report says that
is that an internal choice? Just again to put people's
minds that needs to put the perception to rest. Why
not be transparent with the weekly crime mata?
Speaker 4 (14:32):
Okay, I could follow with our public information off that's
not something that runs through patrol operations.
Speaker 9 (14:37):
And then I had a second question regarding juvenile crime.
I was looking through some of the homicide numbers. I
think we've had eleven juveniles killed this year. That's on
pace to match or beat the numbers where all of
last year. What's being done specifically to target juveniles, what
initiatives are in place, what intervention programs are in place.
We're seeing more teenagers arrested as well, what's being done
(14:58):
to combat team violence.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
So CNPD has tons of multiple programs in place where
we're trying to address team violence, but it really you know,
we sit down and we have these meetings and we
really try to figure out, you know, which partners what
can help us. And you know, we can bring in
faith based organizations, we can bring in mentor groups, we
(15:22):
can lead efforts through our Envision program and our Reach program.
But you know, at the end of the day, this
starts at home. And that's something that you know, CNPD
can't fix. And so if you have a twelve, thirteen, fourteen,
fifteen year old and they're not at home at night,
they're somewhere that starts at home. And so I think
part of what's missing is these conversations that used to
(15:45):
take place in our communities where these young people lay
their heads at night somewhere, and so when they're coming
in all hours of the night, somebody needs to be
having conversations, whether that's a parent, a guardian, an aunt
and uncle, somebody in that child's life to say, hey,
excuse me, this path is gonna lead two ways, right,
and and those are the conversations that we used to have.
(16:06):
So whether or not those are having those conversations are
not having being had at this time. And that's that's
honestly where you know, our opinion is where we can
do better, and we can start working with our families
and getting them some resources to have those conversations with
these young people, because ultimately, by the time they hit
the streets at two o'clock in the morning at any place,
(16:27):
whether or not it's off of Babies for Sugar Creek,
Uptown Charlotte, this all starts at home. Yes it is.
I come uptown.
Speaker 6 (16:36):
I come the guns. You just walk around.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
I secure. I secure my gun in a safe place
when I come uptown, and I eat at restaurants and
I spend time. It's we always tell no matter where
you are, you can be in Valentine, you can be
in uptown Charlotte. You can be in university or we
want people to remain vigilant if you see something. That's
why we talked about say something. It's it's a matter
(16:59):
of again, we don't diminish anyone's perception of their safety.
We take that very serious.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
So that is the questions you heard me ask. Okay, great,
you want to talk reality. You don't want to talk perception.
You want to talk reality. Here's the reality.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Uptown is extremely dangerous. Murders are up two hundred percent.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
Armed robbery is you know, aggravated arms, strong armed ribery
is up.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
All kinds of things are up, all the drug uses up.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Everything involving violent crime is basically up across the board
in uptown. And here's the stat you heard her say.
And she seems like a nice woman, and she's being
told what to say by their pr people. That's why
I said, clearly, the buzzword is perception.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
Perception. Well, here's the fact.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
She said, less than one percent of surface area in
Charlotte is uptown. When you include like all the city limits,
less than one percent is uptown.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
I did the math.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
Less than one percent of Charlotte is uptown, But fourteen
and a half percent of all the murder are in Uptown.
Don't tell me uptown is safe. Do not tell me
that when fourteen and a half percent of your murders
are in less than one percent of your area.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
And by the way, Uptown is the face of the city.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
When they show the city of Charlotte on TV, they're
not showing Providence, they're not showing Steel Creek, they're not
showing University.
Speaker 1 (18:19):
They're showing Uptown in the skyline. All right, when we.
Speaker 3 (18:22):
Come back, Now, let's talk to some Charlotte cities, Charlotte
City Council candidates.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
Easy for me to say, let's talk to them when
we return.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
Christopherccary and James Bowers. Welcome back to Breaking with Brett
Jensen on this Wednesday night. Okay, so last week Friday
(18:51):
at Legals Friday, we played part one of my interview
with christopherccary. She's running for you know, the city council
here in Charlotte and seven against I think her name's
Kimberly Owens, I believe, and she's trying to take the
seat vacated by her husband, Tark Mamacary. So last week
was part one, and here's part two.
Speaker 10 (19:12):
I know, when I first interviewed you back in July
when you filed that, you know, a big thing for
you was also transparency, because that was right on the
heels of the Johnny Jennings secret payout and everything else
where they tried to keep that secret.
Speaker 6 (19:25):
What have you noticed since you filed for July?
Speaker 10 (19:28):
In July, are you noticing that more people are trying
to use the transparency thing?
Speaker 1 (19:32):
Well?
Speaker 11 (19:32):
Yes, and the reason, I mean, there's just more of
the same. I mean, we're paying out our city attorney
sixty some thousand dollars for less than a week's of
work of worth of work. Excuse me. It's just unbelievable,
the decision making of our leadership in our city right
(19:54):
now and the misuse of our tax dollars. And it's
right in front of our faces. So I I cannot
imagine anyone in Charlotte wanting to elect another Democrat onto
our council to continue this terrible decision making.
Speaker 10 (20:10):
So okay, So, other than crime and transparency, what are
some of the big topics that you're trying.
Speaker 6 (20:14):
To focus in on.
Speaker 11 (20:15):
Obviously, you know we have this tax referendum coming up,
and you know, my biggest concern is making sure that
District six gets their fair share of it. So you know,
I have been meeting with neighborhood leaders documenting the needs
of their neighborhood. UH from everything from infrastructure issues to
(20:36):
sidewalks to street markings. You know, District six has needs
and I want to make sure that if that tax
gets through, that we are getting our fair share. But
then also if it doesn't go through and get past that,
I am making a strong case for the district with
Marcus Jones when budget season comes up.
Speaker 10 (20:58):
Let's talk about the seat for a second. You know,
your husband barely won the last two elections by three
hundred votes, three hundred and twenty five votes each. A
lot of people think if once a Republican loses this
particular seat, whether it's this time, whether it's in three
elections down the road, that it will be the last
time the Republican ever holds that seat. When you hear that,
(21:20):
what goes through your head.
Speaker 11 (21:23):
It honestly terrifies me. I mean, the conservative voice around
this country is under attack, and I just can't imagine
that the citizens of Charlotte would want to get another
Democrat voice representing.
Speaker 6 (21:37):
The city.
Speaker 11 (21:38):
We are not that does not accurately reflect the makeup
of our city, and it isn't spurring any conversation that
is moving us forward in the right direction. We are
stuck in a cycle of talking about fixing problems, but
not getting to work to get them fixed.
Speaker 10 (22:01):
One of the issues that a lot of people have
been discussing is the way city council has been spending
the money.
Speaker 6 (22:07):
We already know about three hundred and five.
Speaker 10 (22:09):
Thousand dollars trying to be secretly paid out to Johnny Jennings.
Speaker 6 (22:12):
You know, are there other things that really.
Speaker 10 (22:14):
Bother you about the way the city council has been
spending its money.
Speaker 11 (22:19):
Absolutely. I mean, look at the Excelsior Club that is
coming up for vote. I cannot imagine when our council
is saying we need to be focused on public safety
and we're going to focus on mental health, but they're
even considering giving a dime yet, let alone one point
(22:40):
five million dollars to a private club that will be
for profit. That is unbelievable. That shouldn't even be brought
up right now with everything else that's going on in
our city. It's unacceptable and it is just more of
the same from this leadership and and our Democrat leaders
(23:02):
in our city.
Speaker 10 (23:03):
Speaking with Charlotte City Council candidate Christop Baccari who's running
in District six. So we know about the Arena Zaruska situation,
We know about the Arena Zeruska bill that just passed
up in Raleigh.
Speaker 6 (23:14):
We know that there's been a lot of cats.
Speaker 10 (23:16):
Press conferences lately trying to keep safety on cats. Is
are there other issues that concern you about safety?
Speaker 11 (23:24):
Absolutely, we have a juvenile crime issue here in Charlotte,
and until we get a juvenile detention center opened back
up in Becklomberg County, it's going to continue. Crime without
consequence cannot continue in Charlotte. So we need to have
our council, our County Commission, even cms, we need to
(23:46):
all be working together and going to Raleigh and advocating
for the funding that is needed to get that reopened
because it is going to continue and get worse. The
crimes are getting worse and more juvenile are moving to
a life of crime in our city and it must end.
Speaker 10 (24:05):
Is there anything that I didn't ask you about that
you want to that you want to talk about, or
is there anything that you'd like to say to the listeners,
the voters anything in general.
Speaker 11 (24:14):
Yes, I mean please please come out and vote and
weigh heavily on your mind. What our city, the landscape
of our city right now? What has been going on
in our city? And ask yourself, has the leadership of
our council move the needle on the main issues that
are plaguing our city. Look at downtown, Look at our
(24:37):
uptown right now. That is a direct reflection of your leadership.
And it has been taken over by drugs, by the homeless.
The epicenter is a ghost town. More businesses are closing
every week. We are failing. We are failing our business owners.
We are failing the citizens of Charlotte. And it must end,
(25:00):
and it won't end until we get strong voices on
this council who aren't going to put up with it anymore.
Speaker 6 (25:08):
Christ McCary.
Speaker 3 (25:09):
When we return, we'll speak to James Bowers and District three.
Welcome back to breaking with Brad Jensen. So you just
heard christopherccari who's running for Charlotte City Council in District seven.
Now we're gonna hear from James Bowers, who's running for
Charlotte City Council in District three. James, why did you
(25:31):
decide to run for a District three city council again?
Speaker 2 (25:34):
Well, you know, the most important thing to me was
trying to help the city get loose from all the lawlessness,
the crime, and really just the bad decisions that I've
seen over the last three to five cycles running for
city council. Charlotte deserves better, The police department deserves better treatment.
(25:58):
The people in Charlotte deserves better leaders to make decisions
that are Charlotte centric, not necessarily so focused on bringing
new folks to the city. I mean, it's important for
a city to grow, understandable, but it always has to
be measured, and I feel most of for the most
(26:20):
of in most of the instances, it's not a real
measurement that's good for the city, just good for those
who are investing in the city, and oftentimes those are outside.
Those investors are really outside the city.
Speaker 3 (26:33):
Speaking with James Bowers, who's running for Charlotte City Council,
there in District three the old Tijuana Brown District. So, James,
a lot of the rail trail in the light rail
is actually in your district, including where Arena Zaruska boarded
the train.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
Do you consider that a safe area? Is the light
rail safe? Is the rail trail safe?
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Well, you know what happened to Arena Zaruska. If that
tells it it's safe, then it's safe. That's not the
case at least are the kind of decisions that have
affected not just the right balt city, but the entire city.
The funding the police, not having enough resources for the
(27:13):
police departments. Even now our city has a deficit of
police officers, and then how do you attract them when
you don't have any police officers in training to fill
the spots that are lost. This is not something that
the people have done. This is based on what the
leadership has done and how they have or how rather
(27:38):
their decisions have kept Charlotte in a state of panic.
As I said before in one of my other speeches,
there's a hidden war zone in Charlotte where some of
the undercurrent things that are happening are not paid attention to.
For example of gang violence. I mean, if you would
ask the normal resident, they couldn't say that they know
(28:02):
that the MS thirteen is in their city, but it
is here. So these are other things. And then just
recently we you know, a news conference about you know,
is the city council doing things that are irregular, illegal, immoral?
And even one city council person is on there questioning it.
(28:24):
So are these things, you know, an anomaly or is
it something really really underneath that new leadership can do
something about it, because if you ask the current leadership
to do something about themselves, they're probably not going to
do anything.
Speaker 3 (28:40):
Speak with James Bowers, who's running for District three City Council. So, James,
is transparency an issue with the city council?
Speaker 2 (28:47):
Absolutely, absolutely, just like the the issue with settling and
not letting the public know. Just today, I was out
putting out the art science and I'm a new person
and this person happens to be a Democrat. I was
over there for Alleghany Street and she allowed me to
put a sign in her yard because I just talked
(29:10):
to her directly and we were talking about that issue.
And what had happened to her was that just last
night or so that the youth came by and shot
in her door. Police as she called the police, they
came by and they stopped and even talking to one
of the officers there. Charlotte needs more police and the
(29:32):
issue is not being addressed properly with from city council
and the leadership. They are not addressing the problems. And
is it the fact that we don't have the money, No,
it's the fact. It's really how the money is being allocated.
And when I'm on a city council, I hope to
do perhaps even a forensic analysis of how moneyes have
(29:52):
been allocated over the last three to five terms.
Speaker 3 (29:57):
James, you're in a heavy Democrat district, but you know
people don't care about politics when it comes to crime
and safety. What's been the reaction, like in your district.
Did you go around talking to people?
Speaker 2 (30:08):
Please been It's been great. I've I've stopped to meet
a lot of people even now, stopping at their houses
just saying hello. Because what's traditionally happened is is that
people thinking that just because you're a Democrat, you won't
make a decision that doesn't agree with everything the Democratic
platform said, and vice versa with the Republican side. It's
(30:31):
making a decision about someone who's good and right for
the position because many of us believe the same thing,
many of us have the same issues, and we live
in the same neighborhood. So these things that have that
has been rather keeping us apart. I think they have
(30:51):
kind of been diluted now where people are not are
not looking at what the national platform is saying that, Hey,
you know, if a person is a Republican, oh no,
they can't be a good person. That's not true. That's
absolutely not true. Or for a person a Democrat, they're
the only ones that can fit that spot, make a
(31:12):
decision about them just because they're a Democrats. Well, I
don't think people are thinking like that anymore. I think
people are thinking with their spirit, their heart, and their minds,
and they're not just following. You know, any time that
you're always doing what someone else tells you to do,
they call that flavory. I don't want people to be
(31:33):
like that. People are people, and if they're Democrat or Republican,
my interest is to make the best decisions for them
and represent them in the right way and tell them
when these hard things are coming, and not be concerned
about allocating funds for that certain relationships, certain interests, get
(31:53):
certain benefits. That's not going to happen in my in
my campaign, is not going to happen in my career.
And if the City of Charlotte gives me an opportunity,
they'll steal change and they'll see a voice that stands
up and relates to all the people.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
So, James Bowers is running for Charlotte City Council and
District three. Is there anything that you'd like to say
to the public before we'd let you go tonight.
Speaker 2 (32:15):
Well, yes, Charlotte, North Carolina my home. I want to
thank you all for giving me such a great opportunity
to serve you. But in serving you, you have to
understand that they are going to be tough calls to make.
There's going to be sometimes you're going to have to
(32:37):
separate from people that are wanting to tell you what
to do and what's best for you to do. And
in that you're going to find out that the message
that I bring to Charlotte City Council, etc. Is going
to bring everyone together, everyone to the table, even across
the aisles, and he's going to make decisions transparently and
(33:00):
so that everyone receives the benefit of the decisions in Charlotte,
because Charlotte grows together when everybody grows together. And thank
you so much. I'm James Bowers. I want you to vote.
I'm running for city council here in District three. God
bless Charlotte and godless the United States of Americas.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
Charlotte City Council candidate James Bowers, I really do appreciate
your time tonight.
Speaker 2 (33:23):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (33:25):
All right.
Speaker 3 (33:25):
So that is Charlotte City Council candidate James Bowers there
in District three, going against Joy Mayo, and I believe
another writing candidate or an independent as well.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
But we'll see what happens.
Speaker 3 (33:35):
That's going to be a very interesting race, just as
Christopher Carrey says as well. All right, So that's going
to do it for us tonight. If you miss City
Parts tonight show, go to WBT dot com. TJ Ritchie
is up next. My name is Brett Jenson, and you
have been listening to Breaking with Brett Jensen.
Hi, Oh, let's go.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Oh, let's go, Oh, let's.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Go, Let's go. The News Talking Letter ten and ninety
nine three WBT Brett Jensen here with you on this
Wednesday edition of Breaking with Brett Jensen as we go
up until seven o'clock tonight. Telephone number seven oh four
five seven eleven ten. That's also the WBT text line,
driven of course by Liberty Buick GMC and guys, make
(00:50):
sure you follow me on EXCEP Bret Underscore Jensen for
all the lettuce and breaking news in and around the
Charlotte area.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
And we have got a lot to get into tonight.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
A lot of things is going on with the CNPD
press conferences, and I got a couple of candidates running
for city council who will be joining me later on
tonight as well. But we're going to start tonight with
CMPD having a press conference this morning at ten thirty
to talk about the crime stats through the third quarter.
Now they say the third quarter of crime stats, they're not.
They're through the third quarter. They're not just the third
(01:21):
quarter of crime stats because that would not probably look
too well for a CMPD. But these are the crime
stats through the first three quarters. Through September thirtieth. So
what you're going to do is your first part. This
is going to be a two part thing. The first
part is you're going to hear them make all their statements.
Pay close attention to how many times they use the
(01:42):
word perception. Now I had to edit it down a
little bit so we could get a lot of this
in here. But I want you to hear their opening
statements talking about violent crime being down across the city
and crime overall being down across the city.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
So here's how that went.
Speaker 4 (01:56):
Good morning.
Speaker 5 (01:57):
My name is Crystal Fletcher. I'm a lieutenant with the
Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department in the Public Affairs Division. Thank
you all for joining us here today. Today we're releasing
third quarter crime statistics covering January through September of twenty
twenty five.
Speaker 4 (02:13):
Thanks to the.
Speaker 5 (02:14):
Collective efforts of our officers and our community partners, overall
crime is down eight percent. Violent crime has declined twenty percent.
This is the third quarter in a row that we've
seen that downward trend. Violent crime includes homicides, rapes, robberies,
(02:35):
aggravated assaults, which include shootings. One of the most encouraging
trends within this category is a twenty four percent reduction
in homicides so far this year. There have been sixty
two homicides in the first three quarters of this year
compared to eighty two last year. While this is a
(02:57):
notable decrease, sixty two two homicides are still too many.
Disagreements should never end in tragedy. Violence should never be
the option, regardless of your beliefs, your background, or your circumstances.
Yet too often reckless decisions end in tragedy, leaving families
(03:19):
to grieve the loss of their loved ones. Our detectives
remain relentless in pursuing justice on their behalf. Thanks to
the tireless dedication of our detectives, eighty percent of homicides
year to date have been cleared by arrest. Homicides will
rightfully capture headlines, but they are only one part of
(03:42):
the story. Property crime has also fallen five percent compared
to the same time frame last year, showing progress on
multiple fronts. Property crime includes burglaries, auto thefts.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
And larcenies.
Speaker 5 (03:59):
While these numbers are trending in the right direction, we
know data alone can't capture the real impact. Crime has
on victims and their families. If you are the victim
of a crime, or you know someone who has been victimized,
it can shape your perception of Charlotte safety and Charlotte
In reality, overall and violent crime have both declined significantly. However,
(04:24):
high profile incidents and the influence of social media can
distort public perception, making crime seem more prevalent than it
truly is. First up to speak will be Deputy Chief
Jackie Briley.
Speaker 4 (04:39):
I'm Deputy Chief Jackie Briley. I'm over our patrol operations
for CMPD. On a daily and a nightly basis. Our
patrol officers respond to novel one calls. These calls can
consist of emergencies, traffic concerns, violent and property crimes, as
well as quality of life concerns in our neighbors. Our
(05:01):
officers are focused on keeping Charlotte safe, preventing and reducing victimization,
and strengthening our bond between CMPD and the people who
live and work in our community. Patrol officers are the
most visible and the most vital part of our job.
They're in our communities, they're building relationships, their detern crime,
(05:23):
and they're providing services to our Charlotte residents. Every day,
our officers intervene in minor and large disputes, they stop
crimes in progress, and they prevent violence without it ever
making the news yere. Today, CMPDS had over seven hundred
thousand nominal one calls with over four hundred thousand police interactions.
(05:46):
That means over four hundred thousand times so far this year,
a CMPD officer is interacted with someone living, working, or
visiting Charlotte. The proactive work done by our officers are
reflected in our activity. Our officer initiated efforts are up
eighteen percent, our gun seizures alone are up twenty five
percent with three thousand, one hundred and sixty seven I
(06:09):
legal farms seized so far, and additionally, our arrest are
up fifteen percent. While we consider these increases progress, we
know violent and property crime continues to be on the
minds of our citizens. Robberies and aggravated assaults, including shootings,
can deeply impact a sense of safety in our neighborhoods.
(06:31):
These crimes have lasting effects on our victims and the
perception of crime in our city. Knowing the substantial impact
of robberies and aggravated assaults. CMPD remains steadfast and proactively
addressing these areas. The stats reflect a continued decline in
these categories through the third quarter. During this period, robberies
(06:52):
have dropped by twenty two percent and aggravated assaults by
nineteen percent compared to the same time last year. These
are the results that reflect consistent behind the scene efforts
that make a real impact. While these numbers we share
today reflect our entire city, spanning all thirteen divisions in
our airport, we recognize the recent events, mainly in our
(07:15):
Central Division, have captured national tension, shaping the perceptions of
safety in our city. Our Central Division, which encompasses Uptown,
covers four point two square miles that's less than one
percent of our entire jurisdiction. We recently spent some time
in our Central Division during a community walk the block event.
(07:35):
We started at around eleven forty five pm and went
to about two thirty am, checking lighting, discussing concerns with
some of the community members, and highlighting the great work
being done by our officers and our partners. That experience
reaffirmed how making proactive policing and community engagement are making
a real difference. Building on that energy and recognizing that
(07:56):
violent instances and disturbances sometimes can occur in our busiest
entertainment areas, we took some steps to re implement our
Entertainment District Unit and a new initiative created by the
Central Division, the Crown Initiative.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
All right, so that's the first part. Like I said,
I had to edit some of it to make it
all fit. So when we come back, you're going to
hear the question and answer part, including some of the
very pointed questions that I asked and Katy sold from
WBTV asked about.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
Certain things and certain crime.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
But I hope you paid attention to all that stuff,
and we're going to hit do some highlights and remind
you certain things that they just said when I asked
my questions in a little bit. So all that's coming
up next and again my questions were very pointed and
very direct. So all that's coming up next.
Speaker 6 (08:51):
Week.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
About to breaking with Brett Jensen here on this Wednesday night. Okay,
So you heard the press conference that use the word
perception about four or five times and so, and they've
done it in the previous press conferences in the last
week and talk about perception and the perception. Well, I mean,
let's be honest. The perception is, well, Charlotte's unsafe. How
(09:12):
about reality. If Charlotte's so safe, then why are the
Charlotte Business Partners getting together to actually talk about safety
and coming up with a plan for safety in uptown? Well,
I pretty much asked that question right out of the gate,
and you're gonna hear the questions like these are the
q and as, and I asked some very pointed questions
specifically about the crime in uptown. So here's the second
(09:36):
part of this whole thing with CMPD this morning, and
this part is the press conference part.
Speaker 7 (09:41):
So we've saw a.
Speaker 8 (09:42):
Lot about the status and we saw these statistics.
Speaker 9 (09:44):
The paististics don't tell the whole story.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
My question is about public perception.
Speaker 8 (09:48):
We still feeling unsafe with these high profile cases and
an increasing push for federal intervention. What's your response to
those residents who are looking towards that federal intervention.
Speaker 4 (10:00):
So in reference to federal intervention, I can't really I
don't have a response. And I know we work with
our federal partners to present as many cases as we
can with our task force that we work. Like we
said earlier, we don't minimize people's feelings of unsafe. Anytime
(10:20):
someone's a victim of a crime, that's a violation. Like
you said on the slot earlier, with one hundred and
eleven events or arrest and fifty five of those being
property crimes, that's fifty five victims of a crime. That's
fifty five people's cars who was broken into. That's a violation.
And so we take that serious, and we know that
(10:42):
we want people to feel safe, and we understand that
that's their reality, so we don't minimize that. And that's
why we're trying to do everything we can to really
go after the individuals that are creating a large amount
of these incidents in our area. Our goal is to
try to make sure that we put the right people
(11:03):
in the right places.
Speaker 8 (11:05):
So does the city need the national gut?
Speaker 4 (11:07):
I can't. I know that our officers are proud of
the work that they do right and so I know
that they take pride in the work that they do
every day in Charlotte. We don't have any stance on
this requesting of a national guard. That is something that
was not requested by CMPD due to the chief.
Speaker 7 (11:27):
So clearly a word that you guys are being told
to use is perception. Let's talk a little bit about reality.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Reality.
Speaker 7 (11:35):
In the Central Division, murders are up two hundred percent.
Violent crimes across the board and the Central Division are
through the route drug interactions and drug crimes are way higher.
So that's the reality.
Speaker 4 (11:46):
Part of it.
Speaker 7 (11:48):
Eighteen thousand more interactions, gun seizures up twenty five percent,
as well as the arrestaurant of fifteen percent across the board.
So if that's the case, logical's to dictate that they're
either way more violent criminals and way more criminals and shot,
or you guys are just doing a better job of
arresting people. So which one is it. You've got all
(12:12):
those extra numbers, So there's got to be the reason
why all those extra numbers, Right, there's either way more
criminals or you guys are doing a better job.
Speaker 4 (12:19):
I mean, I think we've discussed it multiple times. As
our city continues to grow, we're going to have more
influx of people. Our uptown is built for nightlife. People
don't just come from Charlotte to come to our uptown
in our center city to enjoy themselves. They come from
all over the region. And so unfortunately, what we're seeing
(12:40):
is as Crystal stated earlier, when someone gets into a
disagreement in a bar or a nightclub, they go back
out to their car, they get into a shooting. That's
why we're telling people, don't bring your guns, don't leave
them unsecure, don't leave them in the car. That's why
we're focusing in those areas. Unfortunately, alcohol and guns, people
don't make good decisions. And there are some things that
(13:01):
we're trying to prevent that's in our control. And there
are some things that if people are going to resort
to guns to settle a petty argument, that's hard to prevent.
Speaker 1 (13:10):
So crime is.
Speaker 7 (13:11):
Clearly up in Uptown, clearly across the board. How long
would it take for Uptown to be maybe as safe
as Self Division or Deprofence Division or other divisions that
are out there. How long is that going to take
to eradicate a lot of the crime that's.
Speaker 6 (13:28):
Going on and there a back to what it was.
Speaker 4 (13:30):
I mean, I don't think we can put a number
or a timeframe on how long. I know that the
efforts are going to continue, Like we said, we're going
to continue with our Crown initiative to almost have almost
a zero tolerance when it comes to some of the
quality of life issues and some of the issues around
our bars and our nightclubs. So there's not a time
frame on that. We're just going to continue to push
and press and again work with the District Attorney's office
(13:52):
and work with our community partners to make sure that
we make some lasting impacts, because again, if we can
take one person who may be committing fire to impart
ones in one night off the street, that's going to
impact our numbers.
Speaker 9 (14:04):
Deputy Chief, is there a reason you all stop the
weekly crime stats back in August? We haven't seen a
weekly crime staff report.
Speaker 5 (14:10):
In several months.
Speaker 4 (14:11):
I don't run the that's a PIO question. They can
follow up with you on that, And.
Speaker 9 (14:16):
Just from a public city standpoint, and there a lot
of people curious the timing was right after the light
reel staff and seemingly no weekly crime report says that
is that an internal choice? Just again to put people's
minds that needs to put the perception to rest. Why
not be transparent with the weekly crime mata?
Speaker 4 (14:32):
Okay, I could follow with our public information off that's
not something that runs through patrol operations.
Speaker 9 (14:37):
And then I had a second question regarding juvenile crime.
I was looking through some of the homicide numbers. I
think we've had eleven juveniles killed this year. That's on
pace to match or beat the numbers where all of
last year. What's being done specifically to target juveniles, what
initiatives are in place, what intervention programs are in place.
We're seeing more teenagers arrested as well, what's being done
(14:58):
to combat team violence.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
So CNPD has tons of multiple programs in place where
we're trying to address team violence, but it really you know,
we sit down and we have these meetings and we
really try to figure out, you know, which partners what
can help us. And you know, we can bring in
faith based organizations, we can bring in mentor groups, we
(15:22):
can lead efforts through our Envision program and our Reach program.
But you know, at the end of the day, this
starts at home. And that's something that you know, CNPD
can't fix. And so if you have a twelve, thirteen, fourteen,
fifteen year old and they're not at home at night,
they're somewhere that starts at home. And so I think
part of what's missing is these conversations that used to
(15:45):
take place in our communities where these young people lay
their heads at night somewhere, and so when they're coming
in all hours of the night, somebody needs to be
having conversations, whether that's a parent, a guardian, an aunt
and uncle, somebody in that child's life to say, hey,
excuse me, this path is gonna lead two ways, right,
and and those are the conversations that we used to have.
(16:06):
So whether or not those are having those conversations are
not having being had at this time. And that's that's
honestly where you know, our opinion is where we can
do better, and we can start working with our families
and getting them some resources to have those conversations with
these young people, because ultimately, by the time they hit
the streets at two o'clock in the morning at any place,
(16:27):
whether or not it's off of Babies for Sugar Creek,
Uptown Charlotte, this all starts at home. Yes it is.
I come uptown.
Speaker 6 (16:36):
I come the guns. You just walk around.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
I secure. I secure my gun in a safe place
when I come uptown, and I eat at restaurants and
I spend time. It's we always tell no matter where
you are, you can be in Valentine, you can be
in uptown Charlotte. You can be in university or we
want people to remain vigilant if you see something. That's
why we talked about say something. It's it's a matter
(16:59):
of again, we don't diminish anyone's perception of their safety.
We take that very serious.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
So that is the questions you heard me ask. Okay, great,
you want to talk reality. You don't want to talk perception.
You want to talk reality. Here's the reality.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Uptown is extremely dangerous. Murders are up two hundred percent.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
Armed robbery is you know, aggravated arms, strong armed ribery
is up.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
All kinds of things are up, all the drug uses up.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Everything involving violent crime is basically up across the board
in uptown. And here's the stat you heard her say.
And she seems like a nice woman, and she's being
told what to say by their pr people. That's why
I said, clearly, the buzzword is perception.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
Perception. Well, here's the fact.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
She said, less than one percent of surface area in
Charlotte is uptown. When you include like all the city limits,
less than one percent is uptown.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
I did the math.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
Less than one percent of Charlotte is uptown, But fourteen
and a half percent of all the murder are in Uptown.
Don't tell me uptown is safe. Do not tell me
that when fourteen and a half percent of your murders
are in less than one percent of your area.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
And by the way, Uptown is the face of the city.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
When they show the city of Charlotte on TV, they're
not showing Providence, they're not showing Steel Creek, they're not
showing University.
Speaker 1 (18:19):
They're showing Uptown in the skyline. All right, when we.
Speaker 3 (18:22):
Come back, Now, let's talk to some Charlotte cities, Charlotte
City Council candidates.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
Easy for me to say, let's talk to them when
we return.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
Christopherccary and James Bowers. Welcome back to Breaking with Brett
Jensen on this Wednesday night. Okay, so last week Friday
(18:51):
at Legals Friday, we played part one of my interview
with christopherccary. She's running for you know, the city council
here in Charlotte and seven against I think her name's
Kimberly Owens, I believe, and she's trying to take the
seat vacated by her husband, Tark Mamacary. So last week
was part one, and here's part two.
Speaker 10 (19:12):
I know, when I first interviewed you back in July
when you filed that, you know, a big thing for
you was also transparency, because that was right on the
heels of the Johnny Jennings secret payout and everything else
where they tried to keep that secret.
Speaker 6 (19:25):
What have you noticed since you filed for July?
Speaker 10 (19:28):
In July, are you noticing that more people are trying
to use the transparency thing?
Speaker 1 (19:32):
Well?
Speaker 11 (19:32):
Yes, and the reason, I mean, there's just more of
the same. I mean, we're paying out our city attorney
sixty some thousand dollars for less than a week's of
work of worth of work. Excuse me. It's just unbelievable,
the decision making of our leadership in our city right
(19:54):
now and the misuse of our tax dollars. And it's
right in front of our faces. So I I cannot
imagine anyone in Charlotte wanting to elect another Democrat onto
our council to continue this terrible decision making.
Speaker 10 (20:10):
So okay, So, other than crime and transparency, what are
some of the big topics that you're trying.
Speaker 6 (20:14):
To focus in on.
Speaker 11 (20:15):
Obviously, you know we have this tax referendum coming up,
and you know, my biggest concern is making sure that
District six gets their fair share of it. So you know,
I have been meeting with neighborhood leaders documenting the needs
of their neighborhood. UH from everything from infrastructure issues to
(20:36):
sidewalks to street markings. You know, District six has needs
and I want to make sure that if that tax
gets through, that we are getting our fair share. But
then also if it doesn't go through and get past that,
I am making a strong case for the district with
Marcus Jones when budget season comes up.
Speaker 10 (20:58):
Let's talk about the seat for a second. You know,
your husband barely won the last two elections by three
hundred votes, three hundred and twenty five votes each. A
lot of people think if once a Republican loses this
particular seat, whether it's this time, whether it's in three
elections down the road, that it will be the last
time the Republican ever holds that seat. When you hear that,
(21:20):
what goes through your head.
Speaker 11 (21:23):
It honestly terrifies me. I mean, the conservative voice around
this country is under attack, and I just can't imagine
that the citizens of Charlotte would want to get another
Democrat voice representing.
Speaker 6 (21:37):
The city.
Speaker 11 (21:38):
We are not that does not accurately reflect the makeup
of our city, and it isn't spurring any conversation that
is moving us forward in the right direction. We are
stuck in a cycle of talking about fixing problems, but
not getting to work to get them fixed.
Speaker 10 (22:01):
One of the issues that a lot of people have
been discussing is the way city council has been spending
the money.
Speaker 6 (22:07):
We already know about three hundred and five.
Speaker 10 (22:09):
Thousand dollars trying to be secretly paid out to Johnny Jennings.
Speaker 6 (22:12):
You know, are there other things that really.
Speaker 10 (22:14):
Bother you about the way the city council has been
spending its money.
Speaker 11 (22:19):
Absolutely. I mean, look at the Excelsior Club that is
coming up for vote. I cannot imagine when our council
is saying we need to be focused on public safety
and we're going to focus on mental health, but they're
even considering giving a dime yet, let alone one point
(22:40):
five million dollars to a private club that will be
for profit. That is unbelievable. That shouldn't even be brought
up right now with everything else that's going on in
our city. It's unacceptable and it is just more of
the same from this leadership and and our Democrat leaders
(23:02):
in our city.
Speaker 10 (23:03):
Speaking with Charlotte City Council candidate Christop Baccari who's running
in District six. So we know about the Arena Zaruska situation,
We know about the Arena Zeruska bill that just passed
up in Raleigh.
Speaker 6 (23:14):
We know that there's been a lot of cats.
Speaker 10 (23:16):
Press conferences lately trying to keep safety on cats. Is
are there other issues that concern you about safety?
Speaker 11 (23:24):
Absolutely, we have a juvenile crime issue here in Charlotte,
and until we get a juvenile detention center opened back
up in Becklomberg County, it's going to continue. Crime without
consequence cannot continue in Charlotte. So we need to have
our council, our County Commission, even cms, we need to
(23:46):
all be working together and going to Raleigh and advocating
for the funding that is needed to get that reopened
because it is going to continue and get worse. The
crimes are getting worse and more juvenile are moving to
a life of crime in our city and it must end.
Speaker 10 (24:05):
Is there anything that I didn't ask you about that
you want to that you want to talk about, or
is there anything that you'd like to say to the listeners,
the voters anything in general.
Speaker 11 (24:14):
Yes, I mean please please come out and vote and
weigh heavily on your mind. What our city, the landscape
of our city right now? What has been going on
in our city? And ask yourself, has the leadership of
our council move the needle on the main issues that
are plaguing our city. Look at downtown, Look at our
(24:37):
uptown right now. That is a direct reflection of your leadership.
And it has been taken over by drugs, by the homeless.
The epicenter is a ghost town. More businesses are closing
every week. We are failing. We are failing our business owners.
We are failing the citizens of Charlotte. And it must end,
(25:00):
and it won't end until we get strong voices on
this council who aren't going to put up with it anymore.
Speaker 6 (25:08):
Christ McCary.
Speaker 3 (25:09):
When we return, we'll speak to James Bowers and District three.
Welcome back to breaking with Brad Jensen. So you just
heard christopherccari who's running for Charlotte City Council in District seven.
Now we're gonna hear from James Bowers, who's running for
Charlotte City Council in District three. James, why did you
(25:31):
decide to run for a District three city council again?
Speaker 2 (25:34):
Well, you know, the most important thing to me was
trying to help the city get loose from all the lawlessness,
the crime, and really just the bad decisions that I've
seen over the last three to five cycles running for
city council. Charlotte deserves better, The police department deserves better treatment.
(25:58):
The people in Charlotte deserves better leaders to make decisions
that are Charlotte centric, not necessarily so focused on bringing
new folks to the city. I mean, it's important for
a city to grow, understandable, but it always has to
be measured, and I feel most of for the most
(26:20):
of in most of the instances, it's not a real
measurement that's good for the city, just good for those
who are investing in the city, and oftentimes those are outside.
Those investors are really outside the city.
Speaker 3 (26:33):
Speaking with James Bowers, who's running for Charlotte City Council,
there in District three the old Tijuana Brown District. So, James,
a lot of the rail trail in the light rail
is actually in your district, including where Arena Zaruska boarded
the train.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
Do you consider that a safe area? Is the light
rail safe? Is the rail trail safe?
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Well, you know what happened to Arena Zaruska. If that
tells it it's safe, then it's safe. That's not the
case at least are the kind of decisions that have
affected not just the right balt city, but the entire city.
The funding the police, not having enough resources for the
(27:13):
police departments. Even now our city has a deficit of
police officers, and then how do you attract them when
you don't have any police officers in training to fill
the spots that are lost. This is not something that
the people have done. This is based on what the
leadership has done and how they have or how rather
(27:38):
their decisions have kept Charlotte in a state of panic.
As I said before in one of my other speeches,
there's a hidden war zone in Charlotte where some of
the undercurrent things that are happening are not paid attention to.
For example of gang violence. I mean, if you would
ask the normal resident, they couldn't say that they know
(28:02):
that the MS thirteen is in their city, but it
is here. So these are other things. And then just
recently we you know, a news conference about you know,
is the city council doing things that are irregular, illegal, immoral?
And even one city council person is on there questioning it.
(28:24):
So are these things, you know, an anomaly or is
it something really really underneath that new leadership can do
something about it, because if you ask the current leadership
to do something about themselves, they're probably not going to
do anything.
Speaker 3 (28:40):
Speak with James Bowers, who's running for District three City Council. So, James,
is transparency an issue with the city council?
Speaker 2 (28:47):
Absolutely, absolutely, just like the the issue with settling and
not letting the public know. Just today, I was out
putting out the art science and I'm a new person
and this person happens to be a Democrat. I was
over there for Alleghany Street and she allowed me to
put a sign in her yard because I just talked
(29:10):
to her directly and we were talking about that issue.
And what had happened to her was that just last
night or so that the youth came by and shot
in her door. Police as she called the police, they
came by and they stopped and even talking to one
of the officers there. Charlotte needs more police and the
(29:32):
issue is not being addressed properly with from city council
and the leadership. They are not addressing the problems. And
is it the fact that we don't have the money, No,
it's the fact. It's really how the money is being allocated.
And when I'm on a city council, I hope to
do perhaps even a forensic analysis of how moneyes have
(29:52):
been allocated over the last three to five terms.
Speaker 3 (29:57):
James, you're in a heavy Democrat district, but you know
people don't care about politics when it comes to crime
and safety. What's been the reaction, like in your district.
Did you go around talking to people?
Speaker 2 (30:08):
Please been It's been great. I've I've stopped to meet
a lot of people even now, stopping at their houses
just saying hello. Because what's traditionally happened is is that
people thinking that just because you're a Democrat, you won't
make a decision that doesn't agree with everything the Democratic
platform said, and vice versa with the Republican side. It's
(30:31):
making a decision about someone who's good and right for
the position because many of us believe the same thing,
many of us have the same issues, and we live
in the same neighborhood. So these things that have that
has been rather keeping us apart. I think they have
(30:51):
kind of been diluted now where people are not are
not looking at what the national platform is saying that, Hey,
you know, if a person is a Republican, oh no,
they can't be a good person. That's not true. That's
absolutely not true. Or for a person a Democrat, they're
the only ones that can fit that spot, make a
(31:12):
decision about them just because they're a Democrats. Well, I
don't think people are thinking like that anymore. I think
people are thinking with their spirit, their heart, and their minds,
and they're not just following. You know, any time that
you're always doing what someone else tells you to do,
they call that flavory. I don't want people to be
(31:33):
like that. People are people, and if they're Democrat or Republican,
my interest is to make the best decisions for them
and represent them in the right way and tell them
when these hard things are coming, and not be concerned
about allocating funds for that certain relationships, certain interests, get
(31:53):
certain benefits. That's not going to happen in my in
my campaign, is not going to happen in my career.
And if the City of Charlotte gives me an opportunity,
they'll steal change and they'll see a voice that stands
up and relates to all the people.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
So, James Bowers is running for Charlotte City Council and
District three. Is there anything that you'd like to say
to the public before we'd let you go tonight.
Speaker 2 (32:15):
Well, yes, Charlotte, North Carolina my home. I want to
thank you all for giving me such a great opportunity
to serve you. But in serving you, you have to
understand that they are going to be tough calls to make.
There's going to be sometimes you're going to have to
(32:37):
separate from people that are wanting to tell you what
to do and what's best for you to do. And
in that you're going to find out that the message
that I bring to Charlotte City Council, etc. Is going
to bring everyone together, everyone to the table, even across
the aisles, and he's going to make decisions transparently and
(33:00):
so that everyone receives the benefit of the decisions in Charlotte,
because Charlotte grows together when everybody grows together. And thank
you so much. I'm James Bowers. I want you to vote.
I'm running for city council here in District three. God
bless Charlotte and godless the United States of Americas.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
Charlotte City Council candidate James Bowers, I really do appreciate
your time tonight.
Speaker 2 (33:23):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (33:25):
All right.
Speaker 3 (33:25):
So that is Charlotte City Council candidate James Bowers there
in District three, going against Joy Mayo, and I believe
another writing candidate or an independent as well.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
But we'll see what happens.
Speaker 3 (33:35):
That's going to be a very interesting race, just as
Christopher Carrey says as well. All right, So that's going
to do it for us tonight. If you miss City
Parts tonight show, go to WBT dot com. TJ Ritchie
is up next. My name is Brett Jenson, and you
have been listening to Breaking with Brett Jensen.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.