Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

Disclaimer: All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The arrest of the two suspects who have been charged in the shooting death of a 14-year-old hours after Carroll's 2023 homecoming football game brought a sense of relief to the community. The two suspects, one a 17-year-old minor and 19-year-old Joshua Smiley, are currently incarcerated, with both facing multiple charges. The minor is charged with Second-Degree Murder, Criminal Conspiracy, two counts of Carrying a Weapon on School Property, Aggravated Assault with a Firearm, and Possession of a Handgun by a Juvenile. Smiley is charged with Second-Degree Murder, Criminal Conspiracy, two counts of Carrying a Weapon on School Property, and Aggravated Assault with a Firearm. What had been a day of having a good time was marred by the shooting that cost the life of the 14-year-old. Justice will be done, and now a family will grieve for a loved one, but it is the environment in which the 14-year-old died that was brought to the interest. A concerned citizen told this reporter of a problem that he believes may have contributed to the boy's death. The shooting happened at night at the intersection of Hwy 165 and Renwick St. when it was very dark. Although there are street lights in the area, at the time of the shooting, it was still a very dimly lit area. Dimly lighted areas are usually a perfect breeding area for crime. It is hard to see someone coming at you, and it would also make it difficult to recognize anyone who would do harm to another person. The fact that the crowd was in an area that wasn't well-lit perhaps made it harder for people to comprehend the danger that they were in. No one was expecting anything to happen. Law enforcement advise people to always stay in well-lit areas when out at night. It doesn't matter if it's early or late at night, a dark area is something that one should avoid, and there are many dark areas in Monroe. It is not well-lit around Carroll, as the street lighting dates back decades. A look around Wossman High at night shows an area that is not well-lit. MLK, however, has modern lights illuminating a wider area of school grounds. There is/was supposed to be a program sponsored by the city of Monroe to "put the light" on crime by having citizens bring attention to areas in their neighborhoods that could be, as mentioned before, breeding areas for crime. The city is supposed to install lights in that area, which it hopes will be a deterrent to criminal activity. It might have saved a life on October 21, 2023. Modern lights are now high-tech LEDs with a brightness that can illuminate areas much better than the lights found along Renwick St. near Carroll's school campus. Now, there are newer, better lighting similar to the bright lighting seen throughout Monroe. A city needs all the tools that it can utilize to fight crime, and a well-lit city/neighborhood is a good start. Citizens and city leaders all want a safer community, and keeping our schools well-lit is not only attractive/eye-appealing and can also enhance the neighborhood.

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