Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • Philly wants to bring back a version of an old strategy to fight gun violence. Specifics are pending.

    Starting in 2013, Philadelphia's focused deterrence program was credited with 35% fewer shootings in its targeted neighborhoods. The program featured "call-ins" where law-enforcement agencies would threaten potentially violent people with prosecution. On the flip side, they could receive services that help them establish a different lifestyle. As the program shifted away from the services "carrots," and was left only with the "stick," the program foundered. In 2019, the city sought to revive it as a "group violence intervention" program with a greater emphasis on services over law enforcement.

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  • This Baltimore anti-violence program courts youths most at risk of crime. ‘The alternative is death or jail.'

    In the first year of Baltimore's use of an anti-violence program for young men that has proven successful in Boston, the program successfully reached about half its targeted contacts, and from that group enrolled about 95, or just over 1%, in job training and education programs. Though extremely modest, the numbers indicate the challenges faced by a population in which several died, many got incarcerated, and many others resisted contact. The program, Roca, uses behavioral therapy to turn job training into life training. In Boston, large numbers get jobs and stay out of trouble long term.

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  • After positive results, Minneapolis looks to expand anti-violence program

    About 40% fewer people were shot in gang-related disputes in Minneapolis during one interval in the first year of the city's Group Violence Intervention initiative. The program uses "call-ins" where people at high risk of shootings meet with law enforcement and other agencies. There they are offered incentives, including needed services, to stop the shootings. It also puts former gang members on the streets, without police involvement, to mediate disputes and counsel young men prone to violence. Based on the initial results, officials planned to expand the program to more parts of the city.

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  • The police experiment that changed what we know about foot patrol

    Of the three most notable experiments testing the effectiveness of police foot patrols at reducing crime, only one – the Philadelphia Foot Patrol Experiment – showed a significant reduction in violence, thanks to a three-month randomized controlled trial. By rethinking an old practice and infusing it with data-driven thinking about focusing on "hot spots," the Philadelphia brand of foot patrols debunked the myth that patrol might, at best, only improve community relations without having an effect on crime. But random car patrols, reacting mainly to radio calls, remains the dominant approach nationwide.

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  • How Baltimore CeaseFire Cuts Violence In Half

    The Baltimore Ceasefire movement -- which asks community members to put away their guns for specific weekends -- began in 2017 when its organizers had enough of the gun violence in their city. Now, the ceasefire weekends, which happen 4 times a year, have resulted in 30-60% fewer gun-related deaths during designated weekends.

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  • Gun Investigators Cautiously Optimistic About New Fingerprint Technology

    A collaboration between England’s Loughborough University, the UK’s Ministry of Defence, and a company called Foster + Freeman has led to a new technology that can pull fingerprints from shell casings. What was once a nearly impossible task, is showing promise, as police departments across the United States try out the new technology. That said, there are still some questions about its efficacy and ability to stand up as evidence in court.

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  • Gun Reform is on the Agenda. But Victims of Color Aren't.

    With gun reform being a key legislative topic, the majority of time, energy, and resources have focused on preventing mass shootings, which amount to just 2-3% of gun-related homicides. The rest affect majority communities of color, which policy, lobbying, and reform efforts have largely ignored. Even with local violence-reduction efforts like Oakland’s LIVE FREE focused deterrence or a Chicago school’s focus on cognitive behavioral therapy showing impact, the allotted resources at the federal level continue to pass them by.

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  • His Aunt Saw Red Flags. Police Say That May Have Prevented A Mass Shooting

    Connecticut has had Extreme Risk Protection Orders, or “red flag” laws, in effect since 1999. These laws allow citizens to provide tips to law enforcement if they suspect danger or violence, in which case law enforcement can then temporarily remove firearms from the suspects homes. While these have gained bipartisan popularity and have shown to decrease suicide attempts, proof of homicide or mass shooting preventions remains to be seen.

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  • If violence spreads like a disease, it can be interrupted. How a new team in Milwaukee is trying to stop one shooting leading to another.

    Milwaukee’s 414LIFE program is treating violence like a public health issue, seeking to interrupt and prevent its spread. The pilot program is a collaboration between the city’s Office of Violence Prevention, local nonprofits, and hospitals and healthcare networks. The initiative works closely with victims of violence to make sure they have the support and resources they need to prevent violent retaliation and employs people who are from the communities they’re responding to in an effort to take a hyper-local response.

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  • Reducing Gun Violence

    Oakland’s Ceasefire initiative takes a collaborative, comprehensive approach to reducing gun violence. City officials, community advocates, residents, and law enforcement work together by prioritizing data analysis, multi-stakeholder gatherings, personalized social services, specialized police training, and weekly reviews of shootings and meeting with victims. While this approach has shown success, it was hard to get started and required the community to organize around demands to stop gun violence. As Philly grapples with similar issues, it looks to Oakland as a model for grassroots change.

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