It’s four o’clock on a Friday afternoon, and the incoming patrol officers of the 17th Police District at 20th and Federal in the Point Breeze neighborhood line up for roll call. Hats slung down low on the brow, nightsticks under their left arms, the five officers stand at attention listening to the desk sergeant give the routine orders of the day. “Be on the lookout for a car of this description… suspect was last seen wearing… items stolen from the home included…” On and on until the crimes seem to meld together as one. The neighborhood has been particularly hard-hit lately with even more violent crime than usual, and the sergeant exhorts his men to be both vigilant and extra careful.

One of those officers is Terry Newson, badge number 6305, whose entire five-year career with the Philadelphia Police Department has been spent here in Point Breeze. Newson knows the neighborhood well enough to quickly distinguish the neighbors from the hoods, and both groups know the handsome, heavily muscled cop by sight. By 4:15, roll call is dismissed and Newson and his colleagues hit the streets.

When asked about the theory buzzing around the neighborhood that the "reassignment" of officers from street corners during the height of Operation Safe Streets back to roving patrols has contributed to the recent violent flare-ups, Newson smiles.

"I've heard that lately, and frankly that sounds about right," Newson says. "The whole thing about that operation [Safe Streets] was the constant police presence. That presence was needed, but now we have to make sure the drug dealers know that those are still our corners. They can never have those corners back, whether there's an officer standing there or not. I wish we could be everywhere at once, but it's just not possible."

Newson says the reassignment involves giving patrol officers small, clearly defined beats of a few square blocks each, ensuring that the car passes every corner frequently enough to give the bad guys second thoughts about conducting their business where everyone can see. There are still limited foot patrols in some selected parts of the city, Newson says, particularly in the Northwest section of the city known as the "Badlands," but here in Point Breeze, the "roving beat" by auto is the order of the day.

The overwhelming police presence of Operation Safe Streets was as welcome to the cops as it was to the neighbors, Newson says, and not just because of the promise of lots of overtime.

"Nothing made us happier than the community's reaction when we were on the corners," he says. "People were happy to have us there, and we were happy to be there. We want to continue that partnership with the community. What we know for sure is that neither the police nor the community can do it alone. We need each other."

During the course of this rather routine shift, Newson interacts with dozens of neighborhood residents, the vast majority of whom seem genuinely happy to see him, and a few who view any police presence with fear and suspicion.

"We have to get the people to unite," Newson sighs. "A unified neighborhood is as much of a deterrent to crime activity as cops on the corner. Maybe more so. The first step is to assure people that they don't have to be afraid. Fear is what the drug dealers count on to ensure the neighbors' silence. You take away that fear, you take away that silence, and the dealers don't stand a chance."

Above all, Newson says, he and his fellow patrol officers want neighbors to know they haven't been abandoned, and that just because they don't see an officer standing on the corner doesn't mean that cops aren't nearby. The roving beat, he says, ensures that response time is minimal.

Officially, the city insists that Operation Safe Streets is not over by a long shot.

Far from it, says mayoral spokesman Frank Keel. Keel says that contrary to the idea that Safe Streets is on hiatus, the mayor plans a major announcement within two weeks, unveiling a new, expanded version of the ambitious plan.

"We're going to be launching a new phase in a couple of weeks," Keel says. "It will include an expanded police bicycle patrol division, with a police-trained citizens' bike patrol. Tell people that Operation Safe Streets is alive and well."

Keel says the emphasis on bike patrols is a response to the drug dealers' new tactic of taking to two-wheelers to ply their trade as opposed to standing on corners where they can be more easily spotted and tracked.

Their corners usurped by police officers, Keel says that the smart dealers figured out that they would need speed, mobility and escapability to continue working in their chosen profession.

"Safe Streets was never envisioned as a static operation," Keel explains. "We will continue to adapt and adjust the operation guidelines and tactics to counter whatever the criminals come up with. It's a chess game, and we're matching them move for move."

Back in patrol car 1710, Officer Terry Newson is questioning the priorities of folks whose shallow egos dictate that they pursue the outward trappings of riches at the expense of common sense necessities.

“We busted one dealer who had a $50,000 automobile, and was wearing a gold and diamond Rolex, designer clothes and alligator shoes,” he says with a laugh, “but when we went to check out his house, the place was literally falling down, there was no furniture at all and they were using a bucket for a toilet because the house had no running water.”

Just then, Newson is interrupted by the radio dispatcher again, instructing him to proceed to Graduate Hospital’s emergency room to investigate a woman who had arrived at the hospital slashed several times, but refuses to give her name and address or identify her assailant. Swinging the car north on 18th Street, Newson checks his watch and thumbs the mic again.