Rochester car break-in victim’s mother speaks out on crime

Just about every day News10NBC has been telling you about cars being either stolen or broken into. This week alone, more than 50 cars in different parts of the city had their windows smashed in.

News10NBC talked to a concerned mother who says her son has been a crime victim twice in the last six months.

The mom lives in Greece, but her son lives in Rochester, and she is speaking out on his behalf because he’s fearful of retribution.

“Society in general is just going downhill, and it just seems to be doing it exponentially, and there don’t seem to be repercussions for what anybody is doing,” said Lindsey Giacalone, who is fed up with crime in the city.

Early Thursday morning, her son’s brand-new car was broken into. Vandals smashed two of its windows. That car replaced the one that was stolen from him back in January.

“We didn’t do anything wrong, and I don’t know that the people who are doing this are aware of the extent of the consequences that they’re putting on all these other people,” said Giacalone.

She is asking: When is enough, enough? News10NBC took her concerns to Rochester City Councilmember Stanley Martin.

“What we really need to figure out is what is the reason why kids are breaking into cars in the first place, and what programs can we create to deter them from engaging in such behavior,” said Martin.

She says the city is working on preventative measures to steer children and teens away from crime. Meanwhile, many are calling for tougher penalties.

Martin said, “Tough laws exists if kids are caught doing this. They do have to go through our criminal process. They get arraigned, they face charges. So those already exist, but they’re still not a deterrent.”

State Assemblyman Demond Meeks says communication between neighbors is one of the biggest keys in keeping a neighborhood safe.

“When you see something, have each other’s phone numbers. Create a list of neighbors up and down your street — so that way, if you see something weird going on you can actually call them on their cell phone or send a text message, and just say, ‘Hey, I see this going on outside your home. Are you aware?'” said Meeks.

We checked back with Rochester Police, who say nobody has been arrested in those dozens of car break-ins.