'NO SNITCH' CAMPAIGN IS NO GOOD: IT SHIELDS CRIMINALS FROM JUSTICE

No snitching is no joke. What "no snitching" means is that a lot of
murderers, rapists and street thugs are able to get away with their
crimes. You'd have to be demented to think that's funny.

But two years ago a group of 'hood rats in Baltimore exploited their
homeboy rights by getting Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony to
appear in a six-minute DVD titled "Stop Snitching."

Since then, other street hustlers have taken up the mantra. "Stop
Snitching" T-shirts have been sold in Baltimore and Philadelphia, and
several Web sites are devoted to ratting out so-called snitches.

In Omaha -- a city where the black population is so small that
everyone knows everyone else's business -- people are walking around
in "Stop Snitching" T-shirts that bear the names of the alleged snitches.

And for $89.99, you can get a lifetime membership at WhosaRat.com, a
Web site devoted to exposing the identities of police informants and
witnesses.

Some of the people who are behind this scandalous movement have
claimed it represents a backlash from the failed drug war.

For instance, under federal sentencing guidelines, a person who gives
up information on a partner in crime can negotiate a substantially
reduced sentence.

Snitches, their critics argue, are getting away with criminal conduct.

That argument may make a little sense when it comes to the drug trade,
but homicide is a different matter.

Seduced by the thug lifestyle Obviously, ordinary citizens who witness
crimes aren't the problem. Most of us are eager to get criminals off
our blocks.

But a lot of young people have been seduced by the thug lifestyle.
They are playing by a different set of rules.

When something terrible happens, everyone knows, but no one knows who
did it.

Recently, the body of a 17-year-old Latino male was found in the alley
behind my house. I don't think I'll ever get over the horror of seeing
him lying there, all but discarded.

It didn't matter that he was likely one of the young hoodie-wearing
teens who I've had to call the police about in the past.

In death, he was simply another woman's child.

He had been shot in the head, and the blood -- his blood -- flowed in
the alley like spilled paint.

He lay there uncovered for nearly four hours before an undertaker came
and took him away.

Later, I learned that his name was Gerardo Garcia. He was a son and a
brother and a nephew, and he was looking forward to graduating from
Proviso East High School in the spring. He liked to draw; he made his
younger sisters and brothers laugh.

All his family wanted to know was: Did I hear anything? Anything at
all?

We were sound asleep that night. But someone knows who killed this
young man -- and, again, no one knows.

Families waiting for justice Proponents of "no-snitch" argue that
witnesses have no obligation to help police. Unfortunately, in
refusing to cooperate with police, gangsta rappers promote a system of
street justice that perpetuates the violence and provides cover for
criminals.

Remember, Lil' Kim ended up in federal prison for not telling the
truth about what she knew of a shooting incident involving her entourage.

That "no snitching" doctrine has made solving murders like Gerardo's
even tougher.

In Chicago, thus far for 2006, there have been 436 homicides. More
than half of those cases -- 290 -- are still open and under
investigation. That means 290 grieving families are waiting for justice.

Monique Bond, director of News Affairs for the Chicago Police
Department, says things could be worse.

"Chicago is fortunate in that we have built upon a strong community
police network and dialogue with community and faith leaders," Bond
says. "That relationship has helped provide tips on several cases in
solving homicides."

The police department is setting up a cold case Web site so that
citizens can leave anonymous tips on unsolved murders.

Cops committed to protecting citizens Meanwhile, young people who
support the "No Snitch" campaign are contributing to their own
destruction. Obviously, there are crooked cops who are abusing
hardworking citizens in these neighborhoods.

Still, the majority of police officers are committed to protecting
citizens.

But cops can't protect citizens who don't want to help themselves.
That's why the "Stop Snitching" campaign has to stop.

The message is doing more than selling rap DVDs and T-shirts.

It is selling out big chunks of the black community.