Craigslist Transactions in Safety

Peter Holley:

When Elrey “Bud” Runion and his wife, June, organized a meeting with a seller they’d found on Craigslist, the Atlanta couple thought they were one step closer to purchasing the 1966 Ford Mustang convertible that Bud so desperately wanted to drive.

Authorities believe the Runions actually arranged for their own ambush, providing Ronnie “Jay” Towns with the opportunity to rob and kill the Georgia couple before dumping their bodies in a pond in rural Telfair County in January. Towns has been charged with armed robbery and murder while members of the Runion family have been left with heartache and anger.

Violent crimes that begin with an exchange between strangers on Craigslist have sent law enforcement officials searching for solutions.

For a growing number of U.S. police departments, the answer is creating safe havens for Craigslist transactions. The goal, police around the country say, is to create public space for legitimate transactions to take place, often under the watchful eye of authorities.