From Giants to Wizards, crime is affecting sports
Conn Carroll
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Monumental Sports CEO Ted Leonsis did not mention rising crime around Washington Capitol One Arena when he announced he was moving the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals across the river to Alexandria, Virginia, but his organization has complained about it in the recent past.
This August, Monumental Sports and Entertainment Director of Community Affairs Crispus Gordon told a Chinatown community meeting, “Our revolving door and lack of prosecution has had a negative effect on the community.”
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D.C. resident Patrick O’Keefe added, “They won’t even stop for a day, even with a dozen cops here, because they know nothing will happen to them. We’re not asking the police to come up with a miracle solution. They just need to enforce the laws as written.”
According to police data, there were 80 more incidents of overall crime within 1,000 feet of Capital One Arena over the past two years compared with 2019 to 2021.
Anyone who has visited Capitol One Arena will tell you the neighborhood smells like a pungent mix of marijuana and urine.
No wonder Leonsis wants to leave.
Meanwhile, across the country, San Francisco Giants future Hall of Famer Buster Posey admitted to the Athletic that crime is hurting the Giants too. “Something that I think is noteworthy, something that unfortunately keeps popping up from players and even players’ wives is there is a bit of an uneasiness with the city itself, as far as the state of the city with crime and drugs.”
Considering how often homeless men attack women with impunity in San Francisco, the players’ wives have a point.
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Will the loss of the Wizards and Capitals finally serve as a wake-up call to the Democrats who control Washington, D.C.? Will Posey’s complaints spur San Francisco’s leadership to action?
If the past is any indication, probably not. Democrats will just continue to deny their cities have a crime problem, and more families, and sports teams, will flee to the suburbs.