Mesa Police responded to a break-in at about 2:18 a.m. April 16 in the area of 4800 E. Princess Drive in East Mesa. Eric Jameson, 38, was shot by the homeowner after a reported struggle, police said.
Randy and Linda Root were sleeping inside the residence when they heard what appeared to be someone breaking in through a bedroom window. A third occupant was also inside the residence.
Mrs. Root ran to a closet to call 911. Mr. Root confronted an armed male who forced entry into the residence.
A struggle ensued between Mr. Root and a suspect. During the struggle, Mr. Root obtained control of the suspect’s handgun and then shot the male suspect.
"(When) we have a situation where we have shots that are fired, the officers now have to go into this very scary situation," said Mesa Police Spokesperson Steve Berry at a community meeting April 24 at O’Connor Elementary School, 4840 E. Adobe Road.
Mr. Jameson was pronounced dead on the scene by Mesa Fire. No other injuries were reported. The investigation is still ongoing.
Mr. Berry said everyone involved in the incident knew each other.
"What their dispute was with each other ... that’s something that we’re still trying to determine," he explained.
Mesa Police Red Mountain Patrol District Commander Steve Stahl said some nearby residents told investigators they saw the vehicle at the residence before and suspected something was not right.
"Be honest with yourselves – how many of you called the police department when you saw that?" he said to attendees.
The Red Mountain District has 104 assigned patrol officers covering about 167,000 residents, and Mr. Stahl encouraged attendees to work with police to help predict or prevent crime.
"On graveyard shift – which we consider from about midnight to 8 a.m. – we have about 13 cops on the street," he explained. "We can’t cover that much area without your help."
He said there are allegations the residence was a drug house, and asked attendees to call Mesa Police’s anonymous Narcotics Hotline at 480-644-6272 when such suspicions arise.
"Give license plate numbers, give physical descriptions of individuals – don’t just say, ‘At this address, there’s a whole lot of vehicular activity,’" he said.
Mr. Stahl went on to explain other issues pertaining to East Mesa crimes and auto accidents. He said more accidents occur on Greenfield Road because it intersects the Loop 202 twice, acting as a traffic escape route.
"People are used to getting off the freeway at 75 miles (per) hour and they’re not slowing down too much when they get in the 45 speed zone," he explained.
He said the U.S.’ economic recession is also not helping matters, as several residents resort to crime in financial desperation.
"Shopliftings have gone up," he said.
Mr. Stahl said officers spend a quarter of their time at outlets such as Wal-Mart, 4505 E. McKellips Road, and Mesa Police are working with these outlets to concentrate on crime prevention vs. prosecution or apprehension.
"Personally, I really like the way Costco does it ... they check you at the door," he said.
Resident Geri Nichols asked if police calls are decreasing along with Mesa’s population.
"We can say that our calls are down, but then again our arrests are up, so I can’t tell you that it’s due to population lowering," Mr. Stahl responded.
Resident Arianne McKenzie asked if Mesa Police could do anything to prevent teenagers from vandalizing the pool and park at North Pointe, bordered by Brown, Higley and Adobe roads and 48th Street.
"If you do follow through with talking to the mom and dad, now you hold the mom and dad accountable," he said. "If that doesn’t work, now you call us."
Mr. Stahl said more than 100 residents volunteer for Mesa Police.
"We have volunteers that are good at a multitude of different things, but we have 467,000 residents and we have 100 volunteers," he said. "There’s a whole lot of talent here that we need to tap into."
Resident Violet Mastroberte suggested consulting retired law enforcement members as volunteers.
"I think that’s an asset," she said.
Red Mountain District Crime Prevention Officer Lindy Marino provided information for forming a Neighborhood Block Watch program.
"Even if you don’t actually form a neighborhood watch group, the information that I can give you will be very, very beneficial if you actually follow it," she said.
Mesa Neighborhood Outreach Coordinator Jo Ellen McNamara talked about registering the neighborhood.
"We want to be able to stay in contact with you because of situations like this," she said.
Call Mesa Police Volunteer Coordinator Linda Bailey at 480-644-2073, Ms. Marino at 480-644-3921, Ms. McNamara at 480-644-5434 or Mr. Stahl at 480-644-2595.
