Razors blades turn up in Newport Beach

Stefanie Frith

More razor blades have been discovered on park playgrounds, this time

in Newport Beach, officials said.

On Wednesday, an 11-year-old boy told his mother that he found two

razor blades on the slide at Bolsa Park, located at Bolsa and Broad

streets. The boy’s mother immediately reported the incident to the

police, police said.

This is the second time razors have been discovered in Newport Beach.

The first occurred at Marina Park on March 23. A parent found a razor

blade on the slide at the park, located at 18th Street and West Balboa

Avenue and threw it away, police said. She did not report the incident to

the police until she returned from vacation several weeks later.

Newport Beach police Sgt. Steve Shulman said his department will now

be working closely with Costa Mesa police, which has been investigating

five incidents in which razor blades have been found in its city parks.

As of yet, no one has been injured, but both police departments are

taking precautionary moves in upping patrol in both cities, police said.

Razors were discovered in Heller Park on 16th Street three times -- on

March 30, and April 1 and 17. Similar discoveries were also made at

Pinkley Park on Ogle Street on April 16 and at Lions Park on West 16th

Street on Tuesday.

“These parks are all within walking distance,” said Lt. Dale Birney of

the Costa Mesa police. “But it’s too soon to think about whether there

are patterns to this or not. And, when you start thinking about what kind

of mind would put razors [on playground equipment], then you have to

wonder what kind of person you are even dealing with before you start

thinking about patterns.”

On Thursday afternoon, Birney issued a release asking that the media

voluntarily refrain from visiting the parks for video footage and

interviews for a period of 10 days, beginning at 11 p.m. Friday.

“Our investigation has now reached a critical stage, and the intense

media presence in the parks is beginning to interfere with our attempts

to identify those involved in placing the razors in the parks,” Birney

wrote in the release.

Also on Thursday afternoon, bright yellow signs were posted in Newport

Beach parks that read, “Recently, sharp objects have been discovered on

and around the playground equipment, specifically the slide apparatus at

city parks.” The signs serve as warning to families to check equipment

before use and to call the Newport Beach police if anything is

discovered.

Similar signs can be found in Costa Mesa Parks, and Birney said

although people are still using the parks, they are staying clear of the

playground equipment.

Shulman said that in his nine years with the Newport Beach police

department, he cannot recall any disturbances similar to this.

“There has been nothing like this that is repetitive,” Shulman said.

“There is just no reasonable explanation why anyone would do this except

to injure someone. Obviously, they are not very child-friendly. I could

say worse things, too.”

Shulman added that the person responsible for placing the razor blades

on the playground could face felony charges for attempted assault with a

deadly weapon.

Parents and teachers in Newport Beach are taking extra precautions now

that razors have been discovered in their parks.

Toby Kramer, a kindergarten teacher at Christ Church By The Sea

Children’s Center said that school security and city workers spoke with

her school Thursday to warn her and the other teachers about the

occurrences.

“Before, we used to just walk over here [to Las Arenas on West Balboa

Avenue] and the kids would just run,” Kramer said, keeping an eye on the

students who were playing on the equipment. “No razors have been

discovered here yet, but we [the children and I] talked about what to do

if they find anything. It’s very upsetting and we sure inspected

everything today before I let them play.”

Melinda Liddicote, who brings three of her four children to play at

Las Arenas Park almost everyday, said she used to let her children run

through the park barefoot.

“But now, we can’t do that. They have to keep their shoes on,” she

said, her children giggling and playing in front of her. “But I know if

they found something, they would come running. It’s scary to think that

something so small could be hidden in the sand.”

Bud Haley, a parent in Costa Mesa, recently announced that he is

putting together a reward for information that would result in the arrest

of the suspect. He is seeking donations from businesses and residents to

create a reward of up to $5,000.

“We’re just local neighborhood people trying to prevent something bad

from happening to our kids,” Haley said.

Anyone interested in contributing to Haley’s fund may call him at

(949) 548-2500.