A young man, Carl Reimer (R.I.P.), was brutally killed no more than a block from where I write to you now. This small beach town of Santa Cruz, California is fast becoming not a small town at all. We are fast becoming a city that has young men killed in public parks then proceeds about our daily lives as if nothing ever happened.
I am reminded of when Tyler Tenorio was stabbed to death in front of a 7-11, and the community outrage over this incident. Where are these same people when it comes to this recent gangland killing? Does community involvement stop and end around the popularity of the victim murdered?
I have a mind to take the fight to these murderers, to show them the residents in this area have guns too. Another element here is the complete incompetence of the local police department. Myself and many others are skeptical that the SCPD will be able to do anything to put behind bars the murderer of a 19 year old local. We feel they lack the experience or the tools required to aggressively investigate a murder case to a conclusion.
Police presence has increased ten-fold since the murder in the immediate area, but I don’t feel any safer. I feel I need to openly brandish weapons and start my own “community involvement” group centered in violently resisting criminal elements by any means we deem necessary.
The rumor about town is that this young man was killed for wearing gangland colors at the wrong place and the wrong time. According to my sources he enjoyed wearing red plaid and backwards hats, which many gang members in this area associate with gang affiliation. It is extremely unlikely that Reimer had any gang affiliation of any sort, and likely this was a case of gang members mistaking his identity for a rival gang member. Regardless this recent act of gangland violence in my town has me thinking it’s time to stop playing by the rules with ruthless murderers and psychotic gang-bangers.
His honorary grandmother is quoted in a Letter to the Editor appearing in the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Wednesday, April 28th 2010) as saying:
Gang members are nothing but cowards. They travel in groups and shoot and stab unarmed people. I want them to know how devastated his family and friends are, and they have taken the life of a beautiful, intelligent, multi-talented and beloved human being.
Cowards don’t respond to fair play and status quo responses. Either these murdering gang-bangers get the message they will be hunted down like animals for this, or they will boldly kill again.
Maybe next time I’ll be the crime statistic, maybe next time a stray bullet will kill one of the many young children who live on the block. Then the community will be sure to rise up, but if you kill a 19 year old in a public park that’s apparently not enough to incite people to do something about it.
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