Making the Running Paths Safer
On January 23, 2001, Sue Wen Stottsmeister was brutally assaulted and murdered in Rock Creek Park. Her attacker, Albert Cooke Jr., victimized Sue on a sunny, brisk weekday afternoon approximately one mile north of Aspen Hill Park. The path that she was using is the same path hundreds of people utilize every year.
It has been nearly 18 months since her death, and a great deal has transpired since then. Cooke was convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Sue's friends and family have begun the process of healing by holding memorial walks, runs, and reflecting at the small memorial park that was once a crime scene. Walkers, cyclists and other members of the community continue to use the path in earnest.
Cooke's incarceration has certainly allowed our community to breathe easier. However, there is still the stark reality that other tragic events may take place. The chances are slim, but they are chances nonetheless.
In order to reduce these chances even more, MCRRC, the Park and Planning Commission (Commission) and the Maryland Capital Park Police Montgomery County Division (Park Police) have worked diligently over the past 18 months to enhance the safety in our parks. New directional signs have been installed and forest overgrowth has been cut back even more. Within the last several months, the Park Police trained and "graduated" additional volunteers to assist officers patrol the parks.
All of these improvements will certainly make a difference. Perhaps the biggest, and most noticeable difference however, are the phones that were installed at the end of August. Based upon a suggestion by a MCRRC member, the Commission agreed to install FIVE emergency telephones in Rock Creek Park between Lake Needwood and Aspen Hill Park. The phones are red, all weather, and connected directly to Park Police. In the case of an emergency, the caller need only pick up the phone and help will quickly arrive. The phones are in the following locations:
- Lake Needwood parking lot off of Avery, below Southlawn;
- Below Norbeck Road off past old Baltimore, but before Greenspan;
- Viers Mill and Parklawn (I believe this is the turnaround point on the Tues/Thurs. runs);
- Parkland and Dewey--Fernon Place; and
- Hunters Lane and Horse Road.
Installing the phones was truly the result of a community effort. The Commission agreed to install the phones, the Park Police worked with MCRRC to raise awareness, and Verizon telephone donated the phone lines. Not only did MCRRC raise awareness, but the running club worked with the Montgomery Parks Foundation to raise the $2,500 needed to purchase the telephones. These five phones are part of a pilot program that will determine if additional phones will be installed on or near other paved paths.
In addition to the phones, signs, and flora maintenance, MCRRC and the Park Police have been providing self defense classes free of charge to women in the community. Thus far, more than 50 women have learned self-defense technics. Classes have been taught by Officer Mary Carlin at Park Police headquarters in Silver Spring. Officer Carlin will continue to teach these classes, and plans to offer advanced classes once additional instructors are found. Needless to say, every member of MCRRC can benefit from learning self-defense. To this end, MCRRC will be offering self defense classes for children of MCRRC members. Classes will be free, and taught by certified instructors.
Emergency telephones and self defense classes are certainly not new. They both appear on nearly every college campus. Emergency phones are also found in shopping mall garages and along major highways. In fact, several emergency phones can be found along the Capital Crescent Trail within the District of Columbia. What makes these phones and classes unique is the fact our community worked together to have them implemented. What makes them even more unique is the fact that MCRRC helped make it happen.
Cooke's impact on our community was unprecedented.
He took away a valuable member of our neighborhood and violated our sense
of safety. What he did not do, however, was take away our ability to restore
peace in our streets and in our parks.
This article appeared in the September 2002 Rundown.
