San Pedro neighborhood watch tough on crime

SAN PEDRO, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Holding flashlights to light their way, dozens of residents walked the streets of San Pedro Monday night, determined to do their part to keep the community safe.

"We can't have cops on every corner, but we can definitely have a great neighborhood watch," San Pedro resident Cari Burich said.

They walked to the Corner Store, a popular local shop, to spend some time together and celebrate the show of community strength.

More than 2,600 residents have joined the Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Watch Facebook group, using social media to alert everyone about vandalism, suspicious activity and other problems.

"When we see something happening in the neighborhood, we have numbers, we know neighbors, we know who would be there and who shouldn't be there. Through working this together, we've made our neighborhood a safer place," store owner Peggy Lindquist said.

Los Angeles city councilman Joe Buscaino hopes to encourage other communities to use the power of social media.

"Don't even think about coming down here and causing havoc, because we have 2,600 strong looking out for each other," Buscaino said.

Los Angeles Police Department officials say two officers from the department will be assigned to a new "quality of life" patrol to focus on criminal activity and other community concerns.

Residents say it's all making a difference.

"The whole community is getting together in this part of San Pedro and we're all watching out for one another to protect our whole neighborhood," San Pedro resident David Olson said.