GREAT PHOTOJOURNALISM

Great Photojournalism

John Tully

Last Straw

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704292004575230532248715858.html?KEYWORDS=black+flight

Johnette Barham sits on her bed in her temporary home where she has been placed while her insurance company is investigating her claim that a fire at her Atkinson Street home in Detroit was arson. Barham lost nearly everything she owned in the fire including her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. She got her dog, Diesel, after several break-ins took place at her old home and it worked as a deterrent for a few years. Many of the rooms in her old home were decorated and the walls were painted, something she said she enjoyed. Nearly everything in her temporary apartment, from the furniture to the few decorations are rental pieces.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in

Johnette Barham stands for a portrait inside what used to be her living room in her Detroit home before someone broke into the home and lit it on fire. It was upwards of her sixth break-in at the property.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in the historic Atkinson district following more than six break-ins, one of which resulted in arson destroying her home and killing her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. Over a span of seven years, Barham said her home was broken into and items were stolen. Despite notifying the police, she said little was done. She was advised to look into purchasing a gun. "It's just not really me and I don't want to feel like I need one to b

What remains of the alarm system at Johnette Barham's home in the historic Atkinson district of Detroit. Her home was broken into over six times, she said. The final time, it was set on fire while she was at work.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in the historic Atkinson district following more than six break-ins, one of which resulted in arson destroying her home and killing her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. Over a span of seven years, Barham said her home was broken into and items were stolen. Despite notifying the police, she said little was done. She was advised to look into purchasing a gun. "It's just not really me and I don't want to feel like I need

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

A dog stands watch at one of the residents in the Boston Edison neighborhood, just a few blocks away from where Johnette Barham's home stood before being gutted by a fire.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in the historic Atkinson district following more than six break-ins, one of which resulted in arson destroying her home and killing her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. Over a span of seven years, Barham said her home was broken into and items were stolen. Despite notifying the police, she said little was done. She was advised to look into purchasing a gun. "It's just not really me and I don't want to feel like I need one to be safe in my own home," she said. On December 17, 2009, Barham received a phone call at work from a neighbor who notified her that her home was on fire. The fire took place during the day, along with 90 percent of the break-ins, she said. While being relocated in temporary housing by her insurance company, her short term goal is to leave the city she grew up in and plans to leave the state for reasons professional, social and cultural, over the longer term.
John Tully for The Wall Street Journal
LASTSTRAW

At the end of Atkinson Street, several homes have been boarded up and abandoned. Most recently, a home belonging to Johnette Barham joined the vacant homes following a fire that began after a break-in. She said investigators found an accelerant throughout her home that pointed to arson.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in the historic Atkinson district following more than six break-ins, one of which resulted in arson destroying her home and killing her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. Over a span of seven years, Barham said her home was broken into and items were stolen. Despite notifying the police, she said little was done. She was advised to look into purcha

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

While visiting what is left of her home following a December 17, 2009 fire for a portrait, Johnette Barham met with her old neighbor, Robert Jeter, Sr., where he still resides in the historic Atkinson district of Detroit. Jeter's home, which sits across the street from Barham's old home, has also been broken into.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in the historic Atkinson district following more than six break-ins, one of which resulted in arson destroying her home and killing her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. Over a span of seven years, Barham said her home was broken into and items were stolen. Despite notifying the police, she said little was done. She was

Johnette Barham waves to a neighbor following a portrait at her old home in the Atkinson district of Detroit that was destroyed by fire.

Johnette Barham, a cancer researcher and current graduate student who was living in Detroit, was forced to leave her home in the historic Atkinson district following more than six break-ins, one of which resulted in arson destroying her home and killing her dog, Diesel, and cat, Tinker. Over a span of seven years, Barham said her home was broken into and items were stolen. Despite notifying the police, she said little was done. She was advised to look into purchasing a gun. "It's just not really me and I don't want to feel like I need one to be safe in my own home," she said. On December 17, 2009, Barham receiv

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst

ingen billedtekst