Community Working Together to Fight Crime
November 08, 2017
Today, the City Commission received an update from the Public Safety Collective at its Public Safety workshop. The presentation included the latest statistics from the Community Uniform Crime Report (UCR) that show overall crime in Tallahassee / Leon County is down by 14.2 percent compared to last year.
Established in June, the Collective is a group of local law enforcement leaders and key partners working collaboratively to address crime in the community. Specifically, to combat violent crime, which is up by 0.1 percent per the UCR, the Collective has begun collaborative initiatives that seek to stem the violence as well as address the factors that lead to criminal activity.
Efforts are currently focused on greater collaboration, sharing of intelligence, joint strategies and partnerships with citizens to achieve greater success in addressing matters that negatively impact public safety.
Through its Top 10 Initiative, the Public Safety Collective developed a list of investigative targets that were identified by criminal activities and criminal intelligence. Since its inception, two of the identified targets have been arrested and further investigations continue.
A key partner for law enforcement in obtaining information is Crime Stoppers, which allows residents to anonymously share information. In turn, Crime Stoppers provides rewards to people whose tips lead to an arrest. To help Crime Stoppers with reward money and outreach efforts, the Commission approved a special allocation of $50,000 in funding.
The Commission also received an update on the Tallahassee Engaged in Meaningful Productivity for Opportunity (TEMPO) program that aims to reach those most at risk and provide a better alternative through education and employment. The Commission approved an allocation of $50,000 in funding to support the program. The program's target demographic – youths age 16-24 who are out of work and out of school – represent, according to data, Tallahassee's largest gun violence victims and offender pools.
Likewise, the Neighborhood Public Safety Initiative seeks to engage citizens in creating and maintaining safer communities. It encourages a holistic, boots-on-the-ground approach to identifying and mitigating factors that make neighborhoods more susceptible to crime. As part of the initiative, a pilot program in the Griffin Heights and Greater Frenchtown neighborhoods was launched on October 28, with more than 100 participants including residents, community leaders and law enforcement officers conducting a neighborhood assessment. Thanks to positive feedback and initial results, assessments are expected to be implemented in the Greater Bond community next.
The Public Safety Collective is comprised of members from the Tallahassee Police Department, United States Attorney's Office, the State Attorney's Office, Leon County Sheriff's Office, FSU Police Department, FAMU Police Department, TCC Police Department, Big Bend Crime Stoppers and the Tallahassee Fire Department. In October, members voted unanimously to have Tallahassee Police Chief Michael DeLeo lead the group. The Collective meets monthly and more frequently as needed.
Contact Information
Public Safety Collective Chair Chief Michael DeLeo, Tallahassee Police Dept., 891-4393
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