I had the cover story in the June 3, 2009 issue of The Weekender, focusing on the recent increase of violent crime in Wilkes-Barre. For the story, I interviewed Mayor Tom Leighton, Police Chief Gerard Dessoye, a sociology professor, a business owner and a city resident to get all views. Despite the tough subject matter (I mean, it’s about death), I enjoyed this story because it was one that needed to be told! Thanks, Weekender for asking me to tackle this current event story!
Here’s a snippet:
Anywhere but Wilkes-Barre. That’s the job search criteria for one local young professional.
Steve Moyer, 25, of Wilkes-Barre’s North End is looking beyond the local classifieds because he said the city isn’t as safe as it once was.
“[Deciding to leave] the area did not originate because of the violence, however, that is slowly becoming a reason. …,” he said. “The recent escalation has me looking for greener pastures.”
In 2009, there have been seven homicides in Luzerne County. Four of them have been in Wilkes-Barre — fourth most in the state. Wilkes-Barre, with an estimated 41,069 residents, is the 22nd largest city in Pennsylvania, according to the 2000 U.S. census. In murders, however, Wilkes-Barre has a much higher ranking, trailing only Philadelphia (1.5 million residents), Pittsburgh (311,218) and Harrisburg (47,196).
You can read the entire story here.