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| Ingleside Station
Meetings Explore Public Safety
Dear Community Member, Our Ingleside Community Forum in February dealt with issues regarding juvenile justice. Our guest speaker, Chief Probation Officer Jesse Williams, gave an impressive talk about the work done in San Francisco to assist young offenders. I was particularly interested in his goal to, not yet obtained, that no young person would be released from the Log Cabin facility, without a high school or GED diploma, a chance of furthering his education, and a viable job offer. Aside from Chief Williams discussion, what I liked best about the Tuesday meeting was the number of new people who attended. This is the best opportunity I know of to come together as a community to explore public safety topics. This month's meeting is on March 21 at 7 p.m. Our guest speaker will be Transportation Engineer Cathal Hennessy who will discuss traffic surveys. A great deal of the way in which I direct the patrol units comes from the Tuesday Community Forum. For example, the traffic issue brought to my attention on France Street has already generated 52 traffic enforcement stops and a call to traffic engineering. Other ways are from individuals and community groups. This month I attended evening meetings in the Sunnyside, the Geneva Terrace, Britton Courts, Project Safe, Visitation Valley, and the Sunnydale. Additionally, sector cars attended many more evening meetings. The point of this is to encourage those of you in associations to call me if you want more of a police presence in your meetings. Please speak with either Sergeant Sloan or myself directly to insure the meeting is scheduled properly. The station is currently undergoing it's annual seniority signup. During this period officers, based on seniority, chose their shift and to a lesser degree the sectors of the district they want to work. Any transition incurs a period of uncertainty and I anticipate our's during the seniority signup will last, say, just about 20 seconds. These men and women are going to hit the streets ready and excited about their new assignments. We are fortunately able to return two excellent beat officers back to their beats. I venture to say those of you on Mission Street and in the Cortland Ave area will know exactly who I am talking about! Sincerely,
Internet Auction Fraud a Big Problem Dear Editor: Internet auctions are one of the hottest phenomena of the web. Yet despite their popularity among buyers as well as sellers, many people don't understand fully how Internet auctions work, the kinds of auctions available--and perhaps most importantly, how to participate in them as responsibly and safely as possible. Internet auction fraud has become a big problem, with an increasing number of consumers complaining about sellers who deliver their advertised goods late or not at all, or deliver something less valuable than promised. To help educate consumers about Internet auctions, the Federal Trade Commission has issued the pamphlet Internet Auctions: A Guide for Buyers and Sellers. The guide offers tips for buyers to protect themselves against fraud, and advice for sellers on how to make Internet auction transactions as smooth and successful as possible. Copies of the guide are available free from: Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Response Center, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580; toll-free 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357). More than 150 other consumer publications also are available online from the FTC at www.ftc.gov. Click on "Consumer Protection." Sincerely,
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