M.A. Dworkin from Yellow Cedar Media (YCM) inquired about the formation in 2021 of the Office of Gun Violence Prevention. The Office was formed with a holistic approach to dealing with crime by, amongst other innovative methods, recruiting ex-gang members and other responsible parties to reach out and intermingle with the community in fighting and preventing crime. YCM was interested to know what the current ongoing activities were in this critical area of crime prevention.
“The idea is to go into communities after there is a shooting, to be on the scene and connect with the needs of the victims and the perpetrators, “ the Governor responded, as he explained the basic premise of the program. “The police need to be able to create better bonds with the community. The problem with measuring that success is that I can’t tell you how much gun violence has been prevented. But if you pay attention to the statistics there is a lot more random gun crime as opposed to gang crime. So I think we’ve made a dent in it.”
The Governor went on to say that there were a number of individuals and organizations that were involved with the program on a regular basis including three pastors from various churches.
“They are doing good work. But it’s a rough situation,” Governor Bryan admitted.
Note: A comment came in during the Press Conference by a resident familiar with the situation.
“The Office of Gun Violence Protection is in the community everyday, both districts, students, and families of victims.”
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