Windsor Forest crime spike raises concerns among residents

Shortly after 11 a.m. on Aug. 24, officers from the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department responded to reports of a shooting in the Windsor Forest area. They discovered a man lying in his front yard on Woodley Road suffering from a gunshot wound, said SCMPD spokeswoman Gena Moore. The incident was the latest of many recent crimes in Windsor Forest, which in some areas borders the AASU campus.

The wave of high-profile violent crimes began with the July 7 murder of 20-year-old Zachias Earle, who died after suffering multiple gunshot wounds.

On July 26, Reginald Williams, 19, was fatally wounded in what police said appeared to be a drug deal gone wrong.

Christine Pingel, 54 was slain in her Sunnybrook Road home on Aug. 3.

On Aug. 9, members of the Windsor Forest community held a meeting in AASU's Fine Arts Auditorium to discuss concerns and what seemed to be an alarming amount of crime in the usually quite neighborhood.

The meeting was set up as a forum for residents with a panel comprised of Chatham County Commissioner David Gellatly, Acting City Manager Rochelle Small-Toney, Chatham-Savannah Counter Narcotics Team Commander Roy Harris, metro police Chief Willie Lovett and Precinct 4 Captain Richard Zapal.

During the meeting, long-time Windsor Forest resident Dean Freeman voiced concern about kids dealing drugs, vandalizing property and running in the streets at all hours of the night.

"You get up at two, three in the morning; there's young kids out running the streets," he said. "They shouldn't be out there that time of night."

Many Windsor Forest residents voiced similar concerns during the meeting, and many brought up the topic of drugs. Others blamed the problems on inattentive landlords and even Section 8 housing.

To many, Windsor Forest is a quiet, family neighborhood, and the recent criminal activity concerns them greatly. Zapal reassured residents that Windsor Forest still was one the safest areas in both Savannah and Precinct 4.

He showed residents the statistics of the Windsor Forest area in comparison with Precinct 4 as a whole and also compared this year's statistics to last year's for the area. All statistics show crime is down despite the recent events.

The members of the panel agreed the key to continuing to keep crime under control in the area was through neighborhood awareness.

University Police Chief Wayne Wilcox said the same is true of the AASU community. "We are a tight knit community," he said. "We know who belongs on campus and who doesn't."

Wilcox said the recent violent activity in Windsor Forest does not affect the safety of AASU students. He said the deaths of Earle and Williams were drug-related incidents. The death of Pingel was not a random act but was allegedly committed by someone she knew.

Nonetheless, Wilcox said UPD would continue to monitor the situation.

Wilcox said students, especially incoming freshman, should be aware living on campus isn't like living at home.

"You have a personal responsibility for your own safety," he said. "Use common sense." He said many of the thefts that occur on campus are a result of unlocked rooms and vehicles and that a big part of safety is personal responsibility.

"If you see something that you think is suspicious, call the police," he said. "If your gut is telling you something's not right, you're probably correct."