CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Charleston Police held a community meeting on the West Side Thursday night to offer an update on crime and allow residents to voice any concerns.
There was no incident to provoke the meeting, although there was a threat on social media at Stonewall Jackson on Thursday, which Chief Brent Webster thought was dealt with.
“We investigated it very seriously. But I understand now, after investigating a bit, getting into the nuts and bolts of what happened it’s something I think we’ve squashed,” he said.
The main purpose of Thursday’s meeting was keeping the public informed and putting a face on the police department.
“They see our officers patrolling. They may call me or email me and some of my staff. But it’s important from time to time to be able to ask a question and get an answer,” Webster said.
The turnout for the event was very small, which Webster thought could be looked at as a positive, pointing out that usually the most crowded meetings are after an incident.
“Usually they’re more crowded when they’re precipitated by a serious event,” Webster said. “And we’ve not had too many of those here recently. And the other reason I think is that there’s a lot of great communication going on.”
Webster said the main concern on the West Side right now is home break-ins because of the drug epidemic, but thought on the whole the area has improved.
“The West Side’s a great place to live. There’s a lot of great businesses and a lot of great people. They have challenges over here, but all three side’s of town have challenges. The West Side may have a couple others that require attention from time to time,” Webster said.