Joseph Trakimas 
Oct. 28, 1992 
Joseph M. Trakimas, 65, Of Scureman Street, Lyndwood, Hanover Township, Died 
Wednesday At Mercy Hospital, Wilkes-barre.

Abington 
Surpasses 
Crestwood

By LISA SCHEID; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Wednesday, October 28, 1992 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A QUICK WORDS: VALLEY VIEW TERRACE 





WILKES-BARRE -- So afraid were 209 elderly women of being assaulted or
robbed that they dared not leave the security of their Valley View Terrace
apartments after dark Tuesday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Not even for a forum on women's safety. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Their absence, perhaps, spoke volumes about the most pervasive fear among
women -- of becoming crime victims. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It's a fear not based on statistics -- more men are crime victims
nationally than women -- but on anecdotes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Everywhere they read, everyone they talk to, has an experience of
violence," said one of the women at the forum. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 About 35 women came Tuesday to the Heights-Murray Elementary School for a
women and public safety forum sponsored by the Luzerne County Commission for
Women. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They came with anecdotes about assaults at housing developments and
robberies at Bear Creek. Some left with strategies to lessen their fears and
to protect themselves. Others met county and agency officials who could help
them. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Phyllis Belk, forum chairwoman, suggested bringing the session to Valley
View Terrace to help the fearful women to protect themselves against crime. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As discussion turned to crime watch groups, some women expressed a fear of
tesifying against criminals. They were worried the criminals would retaliate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Whether or not you testify, if this man has a Mac-10 (gun) and he gets out
on bail or off on a technicality, I still have children. I don't want to have
to run and hide. There's no one to protect me 24 hours a day. I have no one to
protect me but me," said a woman wearing a red-and-white sweatshirt of her
neighborhood group, Moms At Sherman Hills (MASH). &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It is a very real fear for Darlene Laumeyer, Sherman Hills site manager. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Laumeyer, who started MASH, had to withdraw her daughter from GAR High
School after the teen was threatened by others who did not support her
mother's crime watch efforts. The teen attends classes in another district
now. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Mayor Lee Namey empathized with the women. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's nice to say to someone `You've got to stand up and be counted' --
until you have two children," Namey said. He asked them to look at the other
side, that often law enforcement authorities can not prosecute criminals
without witnesses. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TRIMMED HERE &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 District Attorney Peter Paul Olsezwski urged the women to work to change
laws that enable criminals to stay on the street and to vote for judges and
district justices who won't give light sentences.

Crime: Women Say They Live In Fear Women Fear Retaliation From Criminals For Turning The Hoodlums In To Police