Sunday, November 07, 1999
Devou Park is defended despite death
Covington's gem usually safe, police say
BY JANE PRENDERGAST
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COVINGTON — The golf course, museum and panoramic view of the Cincinnati skyline make Devou Park a Covington gem.
So when a body turned up near the concert bowl last week and a murder investigation began, city officials were forced into the position of defending the safety record of their prime recreation spot.
“By and large, we don't have a problem in Devou Park,” said Lt. Col. Bill Dorsey, department spokesman. “We really don't.”
Statistics on crimes in the area bear that out.
So far this year, police took reports on 10 incidents in the park, most of them misdemeanors. The most serious: an assault near Memorial Circle and two thefts of golf clubs.
Last year's picture for the same time period wasn't much different — 10 reported incidents, most of them misdemeanors such as crimi nal mischief and alcohol possession by a minor. The most severe: theft of a car at the band shell.
Police administrators admit the reported incidents don't account for everything that might go on in the park. The department takes some calls about alleged illicit sexual activity in the park, but those have not resulted in any arrests in the past two years.
No city block watch meets in the area. Nobody has ever suggested needing one, said Barb Cook, neighborhood liaison for the many other groups in the city.
The investigation continues into James Berte's death. The 65-year-old Fort Wright man was found dead in the park Oct. 27. Investigators think he lay there four days. They found his maroon, Buick Riviera wedged between two trees that Saturday, but did not connect the two until the day after Mr. Berte's body was found and a friend helped identify it.
Detectives have not specified what they think led to Mr. Berte's death. He suffered trauma, but police will not describe more specifically how he died. They want to make sure some facts are known only to them and the killer.
They think Mr. Berte and another person were in the car together before the killing, he said, as opposed to the car being stolen and wrecked after Mr. Berte was dead.
The park is bordered by some of Northern Kentucky's nicest older homes. It's popular, particularly in the spring and summer months, for Northern Kentucky Symphony concerts in the amphitheater, wedding receptions in the memorial building and lovey-dovey couples admiring the view. And in the winter: sled-riding, legal or not.
Yet given all that, police say that like all parks, it's difficult to patrol because of its size and that it's essentially open all the time in spite of closed-at-dusk signs.
“Devou Park is a big place,” Lt. Col. Dorsey said. “But it's perfectly safe.”
Chuck Eilerman, a longtime supporter of the park, said he hopes the killing doesn't dissuade people from using Devou. Recreation board members have been trying in recent years to schedule more events in the park — more events means more people, he said, and therefore more safety.
“This is really an aberration,” he said. “It's just the reality of life that there will be some violent activity. It's not a reflection on the park.”
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