A.G. Gancarski
Hours before the Jacksonville Journey Oversight Committee meeting on Thursday afternoon, FloridaPolitics.com spoke with Charles Moreland of the Lenny Curry administration about what was going down.
To him, it was simple. The administration told the Finance Committee that they were going to press forward with Jacksonville Journey initiatives when asking for increased funding, and they are as good as their word.
With reports that Curry plans to launch Jacksonville Journey 2.0 at a community meeting next month, this oversight committee meeting was significant, offering the last opportunity for committee discussion before the Big Reveal.
One big news item: the introduction of Project L.E.A.P. legislation. For Councilman Sam Newby, it was a very important “first piece of legislation” for him to introduce.
Project L.E.A.P. was not the only piece of legislation discussed; draft legislation to codify the Journey also was discussed.
Codifying the Journey would allow these initiatives not to have to be continually justified each year.
To that end, a new logo and re-branding of the initiative to “Jax Journey” was clearly intended to imbue the initiative with permanence.
Speaking of permanence, Mayor Curry will invite all the former steering committee members to a 4 p.m. Nov. 12 meeting, to bring the people integral to the process together.
Speaking of former members, three vacancies were addressed. Both current and pending.
As Betty Holzendorf said, “I’ve been here for eight years, and that’s long enough. I need to move on to something else,” adding that she was leaving with confidence in what the Journey was intending do.
“I feel real good about it,” Holzendorf said.
From there, reports!
One such, from the director of Teen Court, discussed how Journey money went to Neighborhood Accountability Boards, intended to help youths convicted of nonviolent offenses, and to provide diversionary approaches to justice.
Their traffic of active cases has declined in recent months, a data point the director attributed to a “change in sheriffs.”
The programs, as promised, had detailed reports regarding clients served, efficacy of programs, and so one, on issues ranging from the aforementioned teen court to summer jobs for youth and felon re-entry and job placement for ex-offenders.
And there was an extended discussion of how to ensure that vendors showed up at meetings to answer questions from the committee, which is another measure of how each aspect of the budget has expected ROI.
“If they aren’t here… a lot of people have programs. A lot of people want money,” Holzendorf said.
Of course, ultimately it’s about the children. Moreland, before the meeting, pointed out a kid in the boardroom who was doing her homework, sitting beside her mother.
She had come with her mother.
“See that? She’s getting straight As,” Moreland said.
Kids like her, Moreland added, are “what Jax Journey is all about.”
And that ultimately is a solid reminder. The Journey is intended to offer redress to systemic issues.
Yet it must be done one person at a time.
As Moreland said at the end of the meeting, “the mayor’s mission [is] to improve the quality of life for everyone.”
To that end, a study of ROI for programs has been essential to “move the needle forward.”
“We’re looking forward to seeing how we can make our city better… as it relates to the Journey. Crime initiatives. Programs for kids.”
Citing the “wealth of knowledge” in the room, Moreland again emphasized that “we’re doing exactly what we said we’re going to do.”
Yet, countered Holzendorf, “we still have a lot of work to do with regard to the prevention and intervention side.”
One comment
Stanley "Doc" Scott
April 26, 2016 at 12:21 pm
A North Bank Holistic Crime Prevention and Reduction Initiative.
Decreasing Violent Crime and Spreading the Love Initiative.
The AAERTT and selected members of the Jacksonville Leadership, Stakeholders and Metro Jacksonville residents will create a proven methodology to reduce violence, empower citizens, and create a safe environment to improve Quality of Life Experience for ALL. In Jacksonville, FL “Every Life Matters”.
Caution: Any methods utilized in communities which suffer from disparities caused by Health Zone 1 pathologies, must always be applied safely, with a moral compass and empathy, compassion, and the best interests of the residents are primary.
“An ounce of prevention is a worth a pound of cure”.
Background
Bill Bratton, former Commissioner of the NYPD in the mid-1990s, led a successful initiative which cut the NYPD murder rate in half during his tenure. His technique became a national model adopted in cities across the country. In an effort to fight violent crime, the AAERTT research and findings agree with the management philosophy based on the Bill Bratton approach.
The technique is supported by a CompStat system, an organizational management tool for police departments, which maps and analyzes crime statistics. In addition, the system holds commanders accountable for providing real-time district performance data.
Further Data
The “broken windows” theory instructs officers to manage minor offenses, i.e.: curfew violations, loud music, and other misdemeanor offenses without arrest. This restores the bridge to the community and officers assigned to the community. Levels of bureaucracy were minimized thus eliminating middle managers and emphasizing the job of the beat cop.
Goal of the Initiative
• Decrease violent crime activity by 30 – 40 percent each year over a three-year timeline
• Civilian Citations (needs a social and civic task-force in 2015)
• Stricter gun laws
• Underserved communities Inclusion in the national economy stabilization.
• Community Leaders and JSO educational awareness of urban drug markets would also be helpful.
In the meantime, here are ten measures with the potential to help decrease the violence as leaders and the AAERTT ponder more aggressive crime fighting strategies and tactics.
1. Maintain a continued Ceasefire partnership between the JSO, Violence Crime Prevention Organizations, Grassroots Community Organizations and an innovative violence prevention organization that applies public health principles in its approach to reducing the number of shootings and killings in communities with the highest rates of murder and poverty.
The two main elements of Ceasefire partnership are;
(1) The direct attack on illicit firearms traffickers and
(2) A set of intervention actions that can give gang members and citizens a strong deterrent to gun violence.
Note: City Leaders, JSO and Jacksonville Community can place strong and targeted enforcement pressure or harsh sanctions on citizens to discourage gun carrying. This is known as “lever pulling.” They can also spread the word among citizens about increased enforcement or all anticrime measures, known as “retailing.”
2. Ensure that Jacksonville Ceasefire Funds and manpower (JSO and Justice Department)
(A) Are dedicated to gun violence prevention,
(B) Do not have to respond to 911 calls
(C) Are specifically selected and trained in respectful citizen interaction, conflict resolution and gun seizures.
(D) Perform general and targeted pedestrian and vehicle traffic stops to identify suspicious activity
3. Build Strategic Approaches to Community Safety Initiative (SACSI) which can reduce violent crime in targeted communities by as much as 50 percent.
Key elements of the SACSI strategy are:
· Leadership by local U.S. Attorneys’ Offices within a collaborative, multiagency partnership.
· Integration of researchers into planning and execution of intervention strategies.
· Design and implementation of interventions that incorporate tactics proved to reduce illegal gun carrying and use.
4. Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) around five basic components.
· Private / Public Partnerships to provide a collaborative and comprehensive approach: · Strategic planning to address enforcement, prosecution, deterrence and prevention.
· Special Training:
· Community Outreach:
· Improve Accountability through various reporting mechanisms.
5. Create federal, state, and local collaborations to offer advantages for local crime fighters facing high rates of gun violence. This includes agencies working across departmental lines in probation, parole, the Department of Children and Family (DCF) and Support Services, the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Duval County District Attorney’s Office.
6. Create conducive police-researcher partnerships that are vital for action research and intervention which works best when police set aside their reservations or “turf issues” and researchers are flexible and sensitive to law enforcement concerns and priorities. For example, social service workers could be dispatched to deal with the most at-risk youths on the streets to connect them with services and keep them out of trouble.
7. Use Problem-solving Policing crime analysis to locate concentrations of crime called “hot- analysis,” to help police identify high-crime areas, types of crime being committed, and other information that will help craft the most effective response.
8. Focus on Deterrence-Targeting High-Risk Areas and Offenders in hot-spots of violent crime to convince Citizens that just carrying an illegal gun or using it will result in a severe federal sentence without parole.
Remain focused on open-air drug markets which can create attractive targets for armed robbers; draw local youth into the drug trade as well as nonresident drive-through buyers; spur the creation of loose drug “crews” whose feuds can increase gun violence; and lead to the acquisition and use of firearms by dealers, buyers and some residents.
9. Increase involvement and transparent communication from community leaders and organizations like the African American Economic Recovery Think Tank, NAACP, National Urban League, and many local grass-roots organizations about personal responsibility and necessary changes needed in the physical and social environment while addressing the causes of violence. Implement mentoring programs that pair a young person with an adult who can serve as a positive role model to guide the young person’s behavior.
10. Increase family education through Duval County Public School, FSCJ, UNF, JU, UF and other social service agencies to prevent violence before it starts. Parents can receive training in child development and learn Conflict Resolution skills for talking with their kids, adults and community and solving problems in nonviolent ways. Social-development strategies can teach children and adolescents to handle tough socio-economic situations and to resolve problems without using violence.
Stanley “Doc” Scott
Founder
[email protected]
PO Box 2672
Jacksonville, Florida 32203
404-719-7188
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