Durham homeowners in one neighborhood are fed up
with what they say is constant criminal activity.
One man tells WRAL he called 911 seventeen times
in one week.
Another says he’s had thousands of dollars of
equipment for work stolen.
They live on Laurel Avenue, which is east of downtown.
“We have been dealing with unwanted drug
activity, the stealing of property, loitering the neighborhood up, defecating
on people’s yards, vandalizing people’s property,” District 5 PAC leader and
homeowner Eddie Hobbs said. “We’re having open fires burning on the street. You
wake up, there’s all kinds of burnt stuff all over the sidewalk, trees,
pallets, just piles of trash every morning.”
The remnants of
fires on the sidewalk are visible in daylight, and the nearby bus stop is
covered in litter.
Some residents
are concerned about the impact on their children, particularly the visible drug activity.
“I’m having to shield them from what they see
on the street, from the urination on the street, smoking on the street, to
people even overdosing,” Almonte Marshall said.
“My daughter used to catch the school bus right
down at that problematic corner, and I had to get her stop changed,” Symone
Frazier told WRAL.
“My husband’s car got broken in three times in one week,” Veronica Tabor said. “They broke into the car so bad that they tore the handles up on his car, which was $1,200 each door to get fixed.”
Charlitta Burruss lives near Laurel Avenue and is
a fellow District 5 PAC leader.
She is frustrated about ongoing issues at the nearby
Edgemont Park as well.
“They’re finding needles in the park, condoms in
the park,” Burrus said.
WRAL covered a shooting in the area in November of
2025.
Multiple homeowners say they do not feel safe in the neighborhood that’s half a mile from the downtown Durham Police Department headquarters.
“18 minutes after New Years, a bullet came through
my bedroom window,” Hobbs said.
WRAL reached out to Durham Police about the crime
issues; they say District 5 commanders are aware of the concerns.
“In response, District 5 has increased directed patrols in the area,
including an increased presence from TACT and the Motor Unit. Officers are also
continuing enforcement and crime prevention efforts in the area, including
addressing trespassing and other observed violations when appropriate.
The Durham Police Department remains committed to working with residents and community partners to identify concerns and address quality-of-life and criminal activity through targeted enforcement, increased visibility, and continued community engagement.”Spokesperson Durham Police Department
The message
from DPD’s spokesperson also encouraged residents to continue to report any
criminal activity to help them identify and respond.
However, the
group of homeowners on Laurel Avenue says they have, and they’re not seeing any
changes.
“My frustration level is so high, because how
long can you cry out and not get any help?” Frazier said.
Some want the GoDurham bus stop to be moved away; they describe walking further to a different stop to avoid the criminal activity they see near that one.
Others want to see changes to Durham’s loitering ordinance.
Many of those residents own their homes, which were built by Habitat for
Humanity.
“Everyone in this community has worked for
our houses. We are homeowners. We pay our taxes,” said Relva Smith. “But everything
and anything goes at the end of that street.”
At this point, some
would rather sell.
“I put my house up for sale, it didn’t even sell, due to the relator
was scared to come over here and present my house,” Smith said.
“None of them will sell because of that. So, we are trapped,” Hobbs said. “That’s
not fair. That’s not fair at all.”
Source: www.wral.com
