That's my whole point. Details and an arrest. I can't get details from anyone. Tried the Chief's office and got nothing. The Telegram hasn't done any kind of follow up. I mean if you are going to brush it under the rug, than brush it under the rug. But if it is out there, as a citizen I want to know that it is a priority of my police department that stabbings are not tolerated in what SHOULD be the centerpiece of the city.

Through friends, so I didn't jump the gun until I read about it in the Telegram. At 4:30 it will be a week. No follow up no statement from police or City Hall, nothing but a very small article buried in the paper.

Kind of what I am trying to figure out is this. Is it better to bury something like this or better to let a little bit of it leak out and then hope it all goes away? Once I know about something like this I want some details. And as I said in the original post I am just as bothered by the fact that in the paper, in the blogs, on the message boards, on talk radio, on the comments of the actual story in the paper, I seem to be the only one concerned at all that a dude can just go into our downtown, stab someone in the chest and then go about his regular day to day.

What kind of message does that send?

Went down there, who do you think gave me the phone number to the Chief's office?

I've kind of steered clear of this thread, but...
the cops got the kid who did the thing (Mon. Telegram I beleive). It was probably a beef (according to the story) and the po po knew who they were looking for. Certainly not a Christian act, but not a random act either.

You know what Gabe? I would have thought you were exagerating if I hadn't seen the comments posted on the Telegram website in response to a story about Worc.'s population dropping. The remarks were ignorant and hateful.

So true. My daughter loves public transportation, it's an adventure when you're a kid, hell even as an adult. My ex takes her to the library several times a week and they eat lunch on the common.

This kind of reminds me of the kerfuffle over that carnival a few months ago. I opened the paper and there was (I'm sure you all remember) a brief article that blithely remarked on "200-300 kids running through the Common, being pursued by officers with riot gear/pepper spray, etc.". I think that there were no arrests and the story rapidly shifted gears to the Carnival's closing time, etc.
Are these actual "cover-ups"? Probably not, but if neither the PD nor the T&G wants to talk about something, then the populace remains blissfully ignorant.

Yes. The police have multiple obligations (privacy of the victim, privacy of the defendant, actually pursuing the case, etc.) that I understand can make it impossible for them to fully and honestly disclose information.
But the paper and it's employees? They serve multiple masters by their own choice. Reading just about any local story in the T&G, it's easy to see the political, "social" and P.R. considerations that were considered before the article was put to print. God only knows how convoluted (or even conscious at this point) the process is when it comes to reporting on crime in Worcester, particularly downtown. But if you're going to call yourselves a newspaper, rather than a political pamphlet or a "Coffee News"-type time-killer, then you should act like one. The T&G hasn't acted like a real newspaper for years.

That's nuts. A little old for bar-fights, aren't we boyos?

A few years ago, a buddy of mine and I had to do some work on Thanksgiving morning, and then had to kill an hour before we went back to the job to pick up a check. Long story short, we thought we'd kill the hour at the Pleasant Cafe, which was nearby and open. It was like walking into a depressing 1950's bar scene set on Skid Row. Beer in water glasses, a 12-inch b+w TV tuned to Bonanza, and perhaps a dozen old-timers staring sullenly into their drinks (when they weren't bumming cigarettes, mumbling to themselves, etc.). It was the most depressing thing I'd ever seen in Worcester. As we left, we bought a round for the house and I've never, EVER, gone back. For a month after that, I'd inwardly wince just driving by the place. Sad, sad, sad.

Forgot the link.

http://www.telegram.com/assets/static/video/2008/kilbyBody/

http://www.areaconnect.com/crime/compare.htm?c1=Worcester&s1=MA&c2=Providence&s2=RI

The above site is a decent place to get facts and figures about how dangerous Worcester really is, as opposed to other cities of similar size.
What's a good city to compare with Worcester?
I tried a comparison with Providence and Worcester isn't all that bad.

Apparently we have about twice the national average in rapes and assaults, but we only have half the rate of murders, so maybe that's a wash.

Getting stabbed in the chest does not sound like a fun time.

Glad they caught the kid. Maybe banning all types of knives will be thrown around at the next council meeting?

More conceal carry firearm permits. These stabby little pricks might think twice when some grandma pulls out a glock and shoots him in the ass while he's trying to get away with her purse.

Come now, boys, this is Massachusetts. Strict enforcement and public vigilance are not the answer. If you really want to address the problem, then you should support programs that work!!! Like painting murals communicating the virtues of diversity, or setting up a "Cultural and Community discussion panel" to deal with relevant social service agencies and "heavily affected communities". Maybe even some harmonic convergence or an extra class or two on how we are "all the same on the inside" should be added to the public school curriculum? Remember, in MA, there are no bad people, only sad people.
Let's turn those gang-bangers frowns upside down! Together we can!