Worried? Yes. Looking away never left anyone immune to violence.

It seems like every time there is a shooting in the city, Goldsboro's top lawman has the same message for the public.

"We are aware of it, and we're working on it."

Police Chief Jeff Stewart offers the answer as a comfort, a reassurance that there is nothing to be concerned about if you do not live in the projects in Wayne County -- or if you are not involved in a drug deal or other illegal activity.

So when he used it again -- after a mother of three was found dead inside a van riddled with bullet holes -- you would think that it was just another report, another murder investigation.

Unless you have been paying attention.

Bullets have taken more than a dozen local lives over the past few years.

And on multiple occasions, shots have been fired in populated areas -- the Waffle House and McDonald's on Wayne Memorial Drive were hit recently.

And who could forget the chase through the city -- on Royall Avenue -- in the middle of the day, with shots fired.

So why then does Stewart just offer a platitude instead of an explanation -- or a plan?

Why doesn't he think residents should worry a bit about the number of reports of gunfire in local neighborhoods?

And why won't he talk about what everybody else talks about -- the fact that there are gangs operating in Wayne County?

We can't be afraid to talk about what is really going on around our neighborhoods -- even if acknowledging it might make the police chief look bad.

Or if residents will worry.

Denial is what will bring the violence to our doorsteps. In some cases, it already has.

Talking about the issue allows the community to join forces, to have neighborhood watches, to report suspicious activity, to keep our neighborhoods safe.

What will it take to hear Stewart -- and the officials inside City Hall -- publicly condemn the violence?

A body on Center Street?

A shooting in Berkeley Mall or, worse yet, a school?

Is that really what it is going to take to wake up the naysayers -- the people who tell themselves, "It won't happen on my block."

And when the community decides to take its stand, will it be in the form of a true movement to end the funerals that are becoming all too common?

Or will it be another morning march through the projects when the young people responsible for many of these crimes are still sleeping off what transpired the night before?

If you believe the police chief, there is no need to worry.

The latest shootings resulted from "a beef between two groups of people" and thus, the public is safe.

But it makes you wonder: If those "groups" were gangs, are our children in danger of crossing their members' paths outside local schools, at parties or, perhaps in the local McDonald's and Waffle House or on city streets?

Maybe Stewart should talk to the people who came face to face with a gunman at Applebee's -- a restaurant on one of the city's busiest corners -- before he tells this community it has nothing to worry about.

Something -- anything -- would be better than his same old line.

Yes, chief. We know you are working on it. And we truly appreciate the sacrifice of the men and women who suit up every day to ensure Goldsboro is a safe place to live and to raise a family.

But the people who pay their salary -- and yours -- have a right to know what is being done to prevent the kind of tragedy that could easily unfold if a stray bullet moves a little to the left or right.

Only then can we take the steps to really make this community safer.

Published in Editorials on December 13, 2014 11:22 PM