FOLLOWING the headline story about youths fighting around Safeway in Acomb (Evening Press, September 5), I would like to draw attention to events in the city centre over the past ten days or so.

Market stall covers ripped and damaged beyond repair.

Obscene graffiti plastered all over market stall counters.

The huge plate glass shop window smashed at Pret A Manger in Parliament Street.

Refuse outside shops in Peter Lane and Coney Street set on fire.

Arson attack on the opticians in Newgate causing untold damage.

Wheelie bins in King Street and Castlegate set on fire.

A mass brawl in the middle of the market which spilled into the nearby restaurant, much to the shock of diners enjoying an evening out.

I wouldn't want to pin all of the above on one set of people. But take a walk (if you dare) through the market after 7pm and you will see it is full of kids aged between 11-16, all apparently armed with cans of lager, bottles of cider, spray paint, marker pens, possibly knives and certainly loads of attitude.

It would be so easy to blame politicians past or present, the police or the council for such lawless youths. However, I put the blame firmly at the feet of the parents. Do they know where their children are or what they are getting up to? More to the point, do they care?

PR Willey,

Burnholme Drive,

Heworth,

York.

...I AM a shop owner and victim of crime who lives and works in Acomb. Acomb has changed for the worse in the five years I have had my business.

I have witnessed the yobbish actions of a minority of school children, shoplifters operating freely to feed their drug habits, and the inaction of the courts to deal with career criminals.

There are ways to tackle these problems. For example, a radio warning system operates in Acomb shops, but we need more members, especially on the fringes of the shopping area. This has been effective in reducing the activities of shoplifters in the past year, while building a sense of community among the shop owners.

We need more Police foot patrols, which seem to have disappeared since the closure of the local station.

The Community Safety Officers need to be in this area every day if they are to be effective. Finally, we need the courts to take "petty" crime seriously.

Three strikes and you're out should be used. We see the same faces in and out of court for the same offences. This must frustrate the Police and the victims of crime.

Paul Cunniff,

Front Street,

Acomb,

York.

Updated: 10:41 Monday, September 08, 2003