Written on Thursday, February 7th, 2008 at 10:25pm by Paul Wolf | 2 Comments

Is Pan Handling A Problem In Buffalo?

At a recent meeting in Buffalo City Hall the issue of pan handling was discussed in response to concerns raised by a Buffalo resident. Some police officials complained that City Judges are too easy on arrested pan handlers, who are affecting the quality of life in Buffalo.

Is pan handling a issue that you are concerned about? Do you think more needs to be done by police and judges to address pan handlers? Read a recent Buffalo News article about the issue and vote in our poll.

Download panhandler_law_found_to_need_toughening.doc

Do You Think Police & Judges Need To Do More Regarding Pan Handling?

2 Comments

  1. Jay says:
    February 8, 2008 at 10:13 am

    Panhandling is a problem in every city, however I have found that in Buffalo this issue seems to be more prevelant.
    One time while walking down Main St. near Mohawk, a man and woman stopped me and tried to sell me a tin necklace they were pawning off as gold. They first asked me to buy it for a hundred dollars and needless to say I was already looking to get out of this situation. Then they brought the price down to $60 and were more forceful with me to the point that they both got up the man was holding my shoulder. He then asked me not to be so nervous and that I was his friend.
    Lucky for me they didn’t have the time to jump me and kick my ass, because supposedly they were catching a bus or something. But my point is do I really have to deal with this kind of stuff when I am walking in the heart of our city and just trying to buy a hot dog up the street?
    No doubt panhandling creates uncomfortable situations and to be honest with you it is most certainly a problem in Buffalo. Now the question is how do you go and stop it?

  2. Anthony says:
    February 12, 2008 at 4:42 pm

    YES. Its a huge problem.
    Its not a big deal to me when somebody down on their luck asks me for spare change. Its something you see time to time. I’ll even toss them some change from time to time if I do have it.
    I’m glad its not just me; it seems like the panhandlers have increased in numbers and have been increasing in their aggressiveness recently.
    When I have people walking up to my car while I’m stopped at a red light, tapping on my window to ask me for money, its across the line, and unsafe.
    When I have people follow me for several blocks on foot, not wanting “no” for an answer, its again across the line, and starts to get a little scary.
    When I’m asked outside a convenience store by a fellow who’s far better dressed than I, his neck adorned with gold chains, if I can spare two dollars… then followed into the store, and asked again if I can just buy him $2 of merchandise instead… then followed back to my car in the parking lot to ask again if I might have that $2 in my car… its WAY across the line.
    These are just a couple examples from my neighborhood (Allentown) from the past week or two. I could go on, and on, and on.
    I don’t know what to do to stop it, and I don’t know that its our most pressing problem, but I’d be glad to see any sort of progress in addressing it… and hopefully in a humane manor for those who really do have a legitimate need for assistance.
    Has anybody had success dealing with this at their place of business or neighborhood? Is there something *we* can do?

 

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