Kentucky Enquirer November 1, 2007

Teen held in shots at officer

Neighborhood helped police find him

BY AMANDA VAN BENSCHOTEN | AVANBENSCHOTEN@NKY.COM

A 16-year-old Cincinnati boy was arrested Tuesday on charges he tried to kill a Covington police officer last week.

The juvenile, whose name was not released, is accused of firing at the officer during a foot pursuit in Covington's Eastside neighborhood.

Officer Jon Mangus was dispatched to East 12th and Garrard streets about 3 a.m. Friday to investigate a complaint of drug dealing.

A teenage boy and girl were standing on the street, and Mangus approached them for questioning. The boy fled west on East 12th Street, then drew a .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol and began to fire at the officer as he ran, said Lt. Col. Spike Jones.

"As he was running away, he turned and fired, we believe, five rounds at Officer Mangus," he said.

Police recovered the weapon, which Jones said is a higher-caliber gun than police use.

"It's not a 'Saturday night special'-type weapon at all," Jones said.

Mangus was not wounded. He did not discharge his weapon, nor did he give up the chase. But the teenager ducked between two buildings and got away.

Investigators worked with community members to identify the suspect, whom they located Tuesday evening in Cincinnati.

He was arrested without incident about 6 p.m. Tuesday by Covington and Cincinnati police. He was charged with attempted murder and lodged at the Hamilton County jail. Police are seeking his extradition to Covington.

Jones praised residents of the Eastside neighborhood for coming forward with information.

"They were very forthcoming and very helpful to us," he said. "They don't want this type of activity going on in their neighborhood any more than the rest of us do."

When Police Chief Lee Russo was hired a year ago, one of his goals was to develop a better dialogue with Covington residents.

He enacted an open-door policy and is a frequent guest speaker at neighborhood meetings.

"I think we've made steps in actually listening to the community and addressing their concerns and complaints," Jones said.

The efforts appear to be paying off.

Eastside Neighborhood Association President Bennie Doggett said the relationship between residents and police has vastly improved since Russo began.

"It's a whole different attitude now, because he's asking his officers to give respect. And in return, they're getting respect," she said. "We're beginning to work together as partners, because we want this crime to stop."

Eastside residents also have enacted block watches and mentoring programs for neighborhood teenagers.

Doggett said crime is down in the neighborhood, once notorious for drugs and violence.

"Everything has cleaned up here," she said. "... I'm not saying that it's 100 percent better, but it's at least 75 percent from where it was four or five years ago."