The Battle for Lawrenceville

This article was written by James Wudarczyk. (Posted January 27, 2007.)

The proliferation of drugs, prostitution, and violence is not restricted to urban areas. However, these negative social problems have been escalating in Lawrenceville for decades; so that by the early days of the 21st century, the issue of crime and corresponding violence became a major topic of concern for residents.

The mythological image of the safe and serene community was completely shattered in May 2005 when a riot erupted at J&K’s Place, 3417 Butler Street, after a security guard tried to stop a group of unruly men from entering the bar without being searched. By the time the raucous was over, an apparent stray bullet fired by the guard killed Aaron Alston, 23, of Garfield, and Janice Kemp, 63, was critically wounded. Kemp later died. According to news reports of the incident, the guard fired after being accosted by a barrage of bottles, glasses, and darts hurled at him by patrons as he attempted to evict the unruly men.

District Attorney Stephen Zappala claimed there had been six shootings at the bar in the previous three months. As a result of the incident and a history of problems, the District Attorney was investigating action to keep the bar closed.

Shortly after the J&K’s Place was temporarily closed, a person was arrested for attempting to loot alcoholic beverages from the establishment.

In the June 2005 issue of The Bulletin, Tony Ceoffe of Lawrenceville United, a community development group, was quoted, “That bar has been a pain for ten years. There are some pretty violent things that go on there. It’s just totally out of hand now.”

To counter the problem of escalating crime in Lawrenceville and other Pittsburgh neighborhoods, citizens have organized block watches and even patrols. An extensive article by Richard Byrne Reilly, which appeared in the January 30, 2006 issue of the Tribune-Review, highlighted the problem of drugs and corresponding dilapidated housing in the community. According to the article, Lawrenceville United petitioned the federal government to evict drug-users from Section 8 housing. The organization was also trying to obtain $250,000 a year for five years to pay for police overtime and increased patrols. A state grant in the amount of $30,000 was received from State Senator Jim Ferlo to help with additional police protection for the neighborhood.

Within a year, Lawrenceville was again in the newspapers as a result of two drug-related deaths. Initial reports contended that the deaths were the result of a potent strain of heroin that left eight dead in the city and 100 dead nationwide. The June 9, 2006 Pittsburgh Tribune Review reported a 50-year-old man was found dead in his home on 38th Street from an overdose of drugs, and later the same day workers at the Church Brew Works discovered a 34-year-old man slumped over the steering wheel of his car in the 3500 block of Liberty Avenue with a needle protruding from his arm.

Violence again manifested itself with the shooting of Michael Vaughns, 24, in a robbery. Mr. Vaughns was waiting at the corner of 44th and Butler Streets for a bus when he was shot in the neck. The incident occurred at 9:45 p.m., only a half a block away from Our Lady of the Angels Parish festival. Vaughns died approximately two weeks later. According to reports, he did not have time to react to the demand for his necklace before the assailant opened fire.

When vandals slashed more than 100 car tires in Lawrenceville, the senseless act of property destruction made the news. Residents at Lawrenceville’s various block watches frequently voiced concerns that police and city officials were apathetic, and the same drug dealers and the same prostitutes remained on the streets. The battle for the streets of Lawrenceville was highlighted in Pittsburgh’s City Paper, July 26, 2006 when the publication featured Tony Ceoffe, Lawrenceville United’s only paid staff member, and outlined plans for countering the drug problem in the community. According to the article, Lawrenceville United’s plan for demolition of some undesirable properties was at odds with the Stakeholders, another community group dedicated to housing preservation.

On August 5, 2006 Lawrenceville was in the news again when Officers Amy Larson and Cristyn Zett posed as prostitutes for a sting operation, which netted two-dozen men, who attempted to solicit prostitutes along Lawrenceville’s Butler Street. The undercover operation was dubbed “Sweatpants,” named for the popular attire of prostitutes working the area. In 2006 Lawrenceville was a hotspot for prostitution, and the arrested men, who ranged in age from 30 to 75, were drawn to the area from McKeesport, Crafton, Oakmont, West Mifflin, New Kensington, and Slippery Rock. This account reported that prostitution was wide open in Lawrenceville, and the girls could be seen working the streets at all hours of the day and night. Jill King Greenwood reported that the area became a “Weed and Seed” neighborhood on June 1, 2006, which made federal funds available for additional police patrols.

A few weeks later, on August 25, 2006 Pittsburgh newspapers reported that 167 ½ Almond Way was purchased by Lawrenceville United for $6,000 and boarded up. The house had a reputation in the neighborhood as a haven where drug dealers and users congregated. Forty arrests were made in a year’s time at the site. Funding for the purchase came from a $175,000 federal grant.

Neighbors complained that the house attracted up to 100 addicts weekly and double that number on weekends. Residents also noted that it was not uncommon to find the grounds around the house strewn with used syringes.

The same day, the Tribpm reported gun assaults and homicides were down in the city from the previous year. However, Zone 2 Police Station, which covered the Hill District, the Strip District, and Lawrenceville, saw a six percent increase in gun assaults.

Two days later, the Pittsburgh Tribune Review reported 200 vases were stolen from historic Allegheny Cemetery. The theft was tied to rising scrap values, and a number of cemeteries in the region reported similar thefts. The cost to replace a single vase ranged up to $495. In the article, Tom Roberts, president of Allegheny Cemetery and president of the International Cemetery Association, noted that although the cemetery gates were locked at night and there was round-the-clock security, it was difficult to patrol the 300-acre grounds.

Many of the events that negatively affect the community never made the newspapers or news. Therefore, it was difficult to access the true picture of just how safe or unsafe the Lawrenceville neighborhood really was. However, events such as the mugging of an elderly man and the attempted robbing of a woman tarnished the reputation of the community. On November 9, 2006 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that three black men and a white youth beat and robbed a 70-year-old man on 46th Street around 7 p.m. the previous night. The same group later followed a woman to her home near the 4500 block of Butler Street. Fortunately the woman was able to run to her home and the group left.

As 2007 dawned, Lawrenceville was again in the newspapers. On January 3, 2007 Pittsburgh police officers cited a man after witnessed said he waving a gun near Wendy’s Restaurant at the corner of 40th and Butler Streets. Although the weapon was a pellet gun, police charged the 19-year-old man with disorderly conduct and violating a city ordinance for carrying a facsimile of a firearm.

On January 6, 2007 the Pittsburgh Tribune Review reported that Zone 2 police station, which covered Uptown, the Hill District, Lawrenceville, and the Strip District, led the city for two years in a row in the number of arrests of prostitutes. In 2005 there were 102 arrests, and in 2006 there were 86 arrests.

A few days later, someone stole a 2003 International salt spreading truck from the Allegheny County facility at 40th Street. The truck, which was valued at $90,000, was loaded with eight tons of salt. It was later recovered near the corner of Ellis and Hawkins streets in the Perry South area of the North Side. County employees indicated that a year-and-a-half earlier someone stole a backhoe. This large piece of construction equipment was also recovered.

Construction work at the new Children’s Hospital was halted on Friday, January 12, 2007 when a bomb threat was left on a phone message at the downtown office of P. J. Dick, Inc. The message contended that 24 pipe bombs were planted at the site and were set to explode intermittently. Police immediately evacuated the workers and scoured the 750,000-square-foot facility. Jeff Wilson, owner of Wilson’s Pharmacy, told reporters from the Pittsburgh Tribune Review that several businesses along Penn Avenue near Children’s Hospital were evacuated. A portion of Penn Avenue remained closed from 7 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. Fortunately, no explosive devices were found.

By the early years of the 21st century, it was apparent that Lawrenceville had been turned into a battleground. Forty years of neglecting the escalating drug problem produced the war zone. Lawrenceville in 2006 was balancing on a pivot. On the positive side, there were still people dedicated to their community, houses being renovated, and community activism. However, on the negative side, there were drugs, open prostitution, property theft, vandalism, and slumlords. The question that remained at the end of 2006: Who would win the battle for Lawrenceville? History teaches that right does not always prevail; but it also teaches that right can prevail. The outcome of this war cannot be predicted because this chapter in the history of the neighborhood is still being written.