Cedar Rapids man attacked near police sub station

Crime can happen anywhere. A Cedar Rapids man says one place it shouldn't happen, is where he was attacked last night.

You know how when you see a police car, you slow down and make sure you're not speeding. A Cedar Rapids man thinks the police department's relatively new substation on First Avenue should have the same effect on crime. But he says it's not...and he has bruises to prove it.

It's difficult to notice the Cedar Rapids Police Department's Substation right on the corner of First Avenue and 15th street. There are no lights on at night and there are no uniformed officers sitting out front. James King says that's a problem.

"I hurt, I really do hurt."

James King isn't standing as straight as he'd like. He says two young men beat him up last night as he was walking home. While what happened is bad enough, where it happened is even worse.

"Fifteen feet from the police annex building, maybe even ten feet from it,” said King.

The department bought this building to provide more presence in an area that's seen more than its fair share of violent crime. In the daylight, officers come in and out frequently. At night, officers can use the building, but no one routinely staffs it.

"It's just an empty building."

"Just to have someone here, and the lights on, just to have a presence, because if you're going to get beat up on the sidewalk next to the police department, you don't feel real good about that."

The police department told us they'd love to have officers there overnight, keeping a watch. But the only way to get those extra officers would be to pull them from less-busy neighborhoods.

King understands...but that doesn't mean he likes it.

"Even just some cars sitting there would have been nice. Because literally, this happened right where the cars would be parked."

But it's not like the department is neglecting this building, the department doesn't post an officer or even a receptionist at the main entrance to their headquarters during the overnight hours.