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You're doin' fine, Oklahoma! - Oklahoma O.K.http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=20080106_1_A1_hTuls55041http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=20080106_1_A1_hTuls55041http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=20080106_1_A1_hTuls55041
Last year proved to be deadly for juveniles in Tulsa, a review of 2007 homicides shows. One in five of the city's 64 homicide victims was younger than 18, including one fetus. The homicide total equals that of 2005. That is five killings short of the record of 69, which was set in 2003. The homicide total for 2006 was 56.
The spike in violence against women and children surfaced in the first month of the year. Some of the juvenile homicides resulted from child abuse, domestic violence and being at dangerous places late at night, police said.
Melissa Schnur, a community relations coordinator for Domestic Violence Intervention Services in Tulsa, said Oklahoma ranks 10th in the U.S. for intimate-partner homicides.
"Anytime there is a domestic homicide, we notice and are concerned," she said. "We did start off the year with a high number of women and children, so we were not surprised to see that trend continue." Two babies and their mothers were killed in domestic attacks.
"A lot of times children are the silent victims of domestic violence and get caught in the crossfire," Schnur said. A police review showed that four babies died last year from abuse or neglect. Sgt. Mike Huff described these cases as very tragic but difficult for police to predict and prevent.
Police cracked down on juvenile curfew violators in July after the 3 a.m. shooting deaths of Derriko Ross, 16, and Leah Harris-Fuqua, 12. Another 12-year-old girl was wounded when a man with a high-powered rifle shot at the children.
Police Chief Ron Palmer said that the number of curfew violations issued by police has been fairly consistent since the curfew took effect several years ago. But parents and guardians also need to take responsibility, he said.
"Where are mom and dad or where are the grandparents? Where are the keepers of these kids that are letting them be on the street at one, two, three o'clock in the morning?" he asked.
"I think it is a message that parents need to understand more than the police. The police understand it."
Huff noted that the last homicide of the year, that of Eric Bell, 21, on Dec. 30, occurred about 2 a.m. in a downtown club filled with many juveniles who he said were in a dangerous situation.
City leaders and police are working to address the situation that allowed that club and others to remain open late at night and juveniles to be out after curfew.
"I think the city is trying to close the loophole and eliminate that exposure of juveniles to violence," Huff said.
Further analysis: A majority of the victims knew or were in some way acquainted with their killers, police said. Victims also often were involved in high-risk behaviors, such as drug use or sales, the analysis shows.
Palmer said it is important that people look behind the homicide numbers to get a better understanding of why they happened.
He also said that although homicides are often the most high-profile crimes, they are not the best indicators of how safe a city is.
"I think as you look at how you benchmark your city crime over any given period of time, you have to look on past the homicide rate and look at the other crimes that people feel invaded by: the robberies, the assaults, the home invasions, first-degree burglaries," he said. "Those types of things people, I think, attach themselves to in how safe they feel in their homes and how safe they feel on the street."
Of the 64 homicides, 11 remain under active investigation. Two await decisions by prosecutors on whether to file charges.
Huff said, "Our clearance rate is still not acceptable, but it is still very, very good," when compared with the national average.
As usual, most of the victims were shot, with 34 homicides from gunshot wounds. The second-largest category was stabbings, with 10 victims.
Two people were fatally shot by police last year. Both shootings were ruled justified by the District Attorney's Office.
January and June tied for the deadliest months with nine slayings each. Palmer said that shows how the frequency of homicides is cyclical.
"It started out as a very bad month in January and then in November we just had one," he said. "We are certainly capable of being less violent people."
Palmer said that the peaks are often affected by whether career criminals are in jail at a given time.
For example, the number of gang-related homicides was down last year, with three deaths attributed to gangs. Huff said that showed that the department's efforts to target and arrest violent criminals made a difference.
Unusual cases: Detectives worked several cases in 2007 that presented them unusual challenges.
The most recent is the disappearance of Cori Baker, 13.
Her presumed death is listed as a homicide, and a man has been charged with killing her even though her body has not been found.
Cori was last seen Nov. 9, when her older sister's boyfriend, Marquis Bullock, picked her up from the Union Alternative School at 5656 S. 129th East Ave.
Bullock, 18, was arrested Nov. 12 in Cori's apparent homicide, and he was later charged with first-degree murder.
Hundreds of people have searched for Cori without success.
Huff said it is not unusual for detectives to investigate cases in which they are searching for a body or in which someone is missing and foul play is suspected.
"But in this case we have evidence of foul play, and prosecutors found that evidence sufficient to file a murder charge even though the victim has not been found," he said.
A unique charge for Tulsa County was filed in another homicide last year.
In the first case of its kind in the county, Jesus Francisco Hernandez was charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of his pregnant girlfriend, Aletheia Kikugawa, and her fetus.
Kikugawa, 32, was found dead Jan. 9 by her ex-husband at her home at the Colonial Park Apartments, 7633 E. 21st St. Police records say she had been stabbed.
Hernandez had blood on his clothing and was driving Kikugawa's car when he was arrested in the death, police reported.
The medical examiner determined that the fetus had reached about 15 weeks gestation and died as a result of the mother's death, Detective Vic Regalado said.
Hernandez was charged with the death of the fetus under a law that took effect in November 2006. One of its provisions recognizes an unborn child as a separate victim if a crime is committed against its mother.
A fetus can be a homicide victim from "the moment of conception," based on the definition of an unborn child.
Pregnant women are at high risk of being domestic violence victims, said Tracey Booth, the executive director of Domestic Violence Intervention Services.
"Pregnancy is a risk factor, and domestic violence can increase when a woman is pregnant," she said.
Also last year, a man was charged with four homicides that took place at three scenes between November 2006 and February.
Police said the suspect, Joshua Anderson, terrorized a neighborhood and that the motives for the slayings were robbery, disputes and drugs.
"In this case, our first hurdle was to get past the intimidation of the witnesses. They were scared to come forward because they had been terrorized," Huff said.
Authorities said in November that Anderson would not be eligible for the death penalty because evidence indicates that he is mentally retarded.
