[00:00:03]
[CALL TO ORDER]
TO THE COUNCIL CHAMBER OF EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH.IT IS THE 26TH OF JANUARY OF 2022.
GOOD TO HAVE ALL OF YOU TUNED IN ON METRO 21 ON FACEBOOK LIVE AND ON OUR STREAMING VIDEO AND ALSO ON COX CABLE, 21 AND 99 ON A T AND T.
NOW THIS IS THE FIRST MONTH OF THE YEAR.
AND SO WE WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT OUR COUNCIL MEMBER WHO REPRESENTS DISTRICT.
NUMBER ONE IS DISTRICT, UH, IS A VALID A THIRD OF THE PARISH.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE SCREEN, A THIRD OF THE PARISH TO THE NORTH, OVER TO THE WEST WEST BATON ROUGE PARISH ACROSS THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER, THE FELICIANO IS TO THE NORTH THAT ST.
ALINA TO THE NORTHEAST, AND THEN LIVINGSTON PARISH.
IF YOU LOOK ACROSS THE AMY RIVER AND YOU HEAR THINGS UP THERE, LIKE INDIAN MOUND AND PRIDE AND CHENEY VILLE, HE REPRESENTS THE CITY OF ZACHARY AND ALSO THE NORTHERN PART OF BAKER AND THE NORTHERN PART OF CENTRAL BRANDON, UH, NOAH WAS ELECTED TO THE EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH.
A METROPOLITAN COUNCIL TOOK HIS SEAT JANUARY, 2021.
BRANDON IS FIRST ENTERED PUBLIC SERVICE ARENA BACK IN 2010, WHERE HE RAN FOR THE ZACHARY CITY COUNCIL SEAT AT THE AGE OF 27.
AND HE WAS ELECTED TO THE ZACHARY CITY COUNCIL IN NOVEMBER OF 2010 ASSUMED OFFICE JANUARY 10TH, 2011, AND WAS REELECTED 2014.
AND AGAIN, IN 2018 REPRESENTING COUNCIL DISTRICT TWO AND SERVING TWO TERMS AS THEIR MAYOR PRO TEM.
BRANDON IS A GRADUATE OF LSU WITH A BACHELOR'S DEGREE IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.
HE IS ACTIVE IN THE COMMUNITY.
HAVING SERVED BOTH AS PRESIDENT AND A BOARD MEMBER OF THE ZACHARY ROTARY CLUB AND IS A MEMBER OF THE ZACHARY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BOARD.
AND AS AN AMBASSADOR FOR THE ZACHARY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, BRANDON IS CURRENTLY EMPLOYED AS VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMERCIAL LENDING AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AT LANDMARK BANK.
AND, UH, ALSO BRANDON NOEL IS LICENSED REALTOR AND OWNER OF THE LOCAL REAL ESTATE BROKERAGE.
HE HAS MARRIED TO MEGAN NOAH, AND SHE'S THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AT ZACHARY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
AND THEY HAVE TWO CHILDREN, GRACE AND EVAN, AND THEY ARE VERY, VERY ACTIVE, ACTIVE MEMBERS OF ST.
JOHN THE BAPTIST CATHOLIC CHURCH IN ZACHARY LOUISIANA, WHERE BRANDON ALSO VOLUNTEERS BY TEACHING RELIGIOUS EDUCATION.
AND IT'S A PLEASURE TO HAVE HIM AS OUR DISTRICT.
PRESIDENT PRO TEM OF EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH.
AND HE USED TO MY WRITERS ALWAYS COUNSELING LAMONT COACH.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, DENNIS, GIVE DENNIS ROUND OF APPLAUSE.
YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT COME COMING.
I WANT TO WELCOME EVERY ONE SOLID REGULARLY SCHEDULED METROPOLITAN COUNCIL MEETING ON THIS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26.
UH, ASHLEY, DO WE HAVE A QUORUM? WE HAVE A FORUM AT THIS TIME.
WE'RE GOING TO BE LED IN INVOCATION BY JENNIFER BOYD OF DISTRICT ONE.
AND WE'RE GOING TO BE LED IN THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE BY LEAH MCGEE IS SENIOR AT BANNERMAN'S MAGNET HIGH SCHOOL.
DEAR HEAVENLY FATHER, WE COME TO YOU WITH GRATITUDE AND PRAISE FOR ALL YOU ARE.
AND FOR ALL YOU DO, PLEASE BE WITH EACH OF US AS WE COME TOGETHER TO SERVE ONE ANOTHER AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER FOR THE GOOD OF THIS GREAT PARISH, PLEASE GIVE US THE DISCERNMENT OF YOUR WILL AND PRESS ON OUR HEARTS.
WHAT YOU WILL HAVE A SAY AND DO, PLEASE MAKE IT OUR DESIRE TO FURTHER YOUR KINGDOM.
WE LOVE YOU AND GIVE YOU EVERY BIT OF THE GLORY IN JESUS NAME.
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
THANK YOU, MS. BOYD, AND THANK YOU LATER.
CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU AGAIN FOR ACADEMIES.
I DIDN'T GET ACCEPTED TO COLLEGE, BUT, UH, WE'RE GOING TO GO WITH FIRST AND FOREMOST.
I'VE ALWAYS, I WANT TO WELCOME ALL OF OUR VISITS TO THOSE AND THOSE OF YOU WATCHING AT HOME AS WELL AS OUR CITY PARISH EMPLOYEES.
WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.
[ADOPTION AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES]
NUMBER ONE, APPROVAL AND ADOPTION OF THE MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL METROPOLITAN COUNCIL MEETING OF JANUARY 12TH, 2022 IN THE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL MEETING OF JANUARY 12TH, 2022, AND THE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL ZONING MEETING ON JANUARY 19TH, 2022[00:05:01]
BY THE COUNCIL ADMINISTRATIVE TREASURER.UH, IF ANYONE HAD TO SPEAK ON ITEM ONE, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE ITEM ONE? SO MOVED BY COUNCILMAN MOST SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER HERS.
[INTRODUCTIONS]
ASK HIM, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ INTRODUCTIONS SECTION 2.12 INTRODUCTIONS.NUMBER TWO, A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE IMPOSITION AND COLLECTION WITHIN THE CONQUER TO STATES CRIME PREVENTION DISTRICT HAVE AN ANNUAL FEE IN THE AMOUNT OF $60, $69 AND 50 CENTS ON EACH LOT SUBDIVIDED PORTION OF GROUND OR INDIVIDUAL TRACT AND THE DISTRICT FOR A PERIOD OF FOUR YEARS BEGINNING WITH THE YEAR 2022 FOR THE PURPOSE OF AIDING AND CRIME PREVENTION AND ADDING TO THE SECURITY OF THE DISTRICT FOR RESIDENTS AND PROVIDING FOR AN INCREASE IN THE PRESENCE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL IN THE DISTRICT IN ACCORDANCE WITH ACT SIX 17 OF THE 2004 LA LOUISIANA LEGISLATIVE SESSION BY THE COUNCIL ADMINISTRATOR TREASURE, NUMBER THREE CONSIDERATION OF THE EYE TYPE APPLICATION OF CUSTOM METAL WORKS LLC FOR A PROJECT LOCATED IN EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH BY THE COUNCIL ADMINISTRATOR TREASURER, NUMBER FOUR, AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR PRESIDENT TO EXECUTE AN AGREEMENT WITH B E DASH C I E INC, AND NEIL JOHNSON, LLC, AND JOINT VENTURE FOR ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN SERVICES AND CONNECTION WITH THE EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH CITY FALL WHEN RETROFIT IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $707,945 BY BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS DIRECTOR NUMBER FIVE, AUTHORIZING SETTLEMENT OF THE CLAIM OF KIM BABIN FOR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM A SEWER BACKUP IN HER, IN HER HOME AND NOT TO EXCEED AN AMOUNT OF $66,650 AND 64 CENTS, WHICH SHALL BE ALLOCATED AT $33,343 AND 96 CENTS FOR DAMAGES SUSTAINED AT 2162 GARDERE LANE AND $33,306 AND 58 CENTS FOR DAMAGES SUSTAINED TO 2172 GARDERE LANE AND APPROPRIATING THAT SUM FOR SUCH PURPOSE BY THE PARISH ATTORNEY NUMBER SIX, AUTHORIZING SETTLEMENT OF THE MATTER ENTITLED BELINDA CREOLE DAVIS VS THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE, PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE AND LUCAS REED FOR THE AMOUNT OF $150,000 PLUS COURT COSTS AND THE AMOUNT OF $38 FOR A TOTAL OF $150,038 AND APPROPRIATE IN THAT PSALM FOR SUCH PURPOSE BY THE PARISH ATTORNEY NUMBER SEVEN, AMENDING AND REENACTING TITLE EIGHT CHAPTER ONE PART ONE SECTION EIGHT, COLON TO, UH, OF THE INTERNATIONAL RESIDENTIAL CODE AND INTERNATIONAL EXISTING BUILDING CODE.
SO AS TO CLARIFY ALL OTHER PERMIT FEES ASSOCIATED WITH CONSTRUCTION CHAPTER ONE, BUILDING CODE PART TWO, AIR CONDITIONING, HEATING VENTILATION AND MECHANICAL REFRIGERATION SYSTEM, SECTION EIGHT, COLON 21 PERMIT FEES.
SO IT WAS TO AMEND AND SIMPLIFY PERMIT FEES ASSOCIATED WITH HEATING AND AIR CONDITIONING VENTILATION SYSTEMS CHAPTER TWO, PLUMBING CODE, SECTION EIGHT, COLON 1 0 2 AMENDMENT AND AMENDING SECTION EIGHT, COLON ONE OR 3.7 0.1 FEES.
SO AS TO AMEND AND SIMPLIFY PERMIT FEES ASSOCIATED WITH PLUMBING, CHAPTER THREE 11 CODE SECTION EIGHT, COLON 3 32.
SO AS TO AMEND AND SIMPLIFY PERMIT FEES ASSOCIATED WITH ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION BY THE DEPARTMENT OF DEVELOPMENT, NUMBER EIGHT, AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR PRESIDENT TO ENTER INTO AN EXECUTE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE OFFICE OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FOR GRANT ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT FOR SUB-RECIPIENTS AND DEVELOPERS AWARDED UNDER THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT CARES, ACT HOME INVESTMENT PARTNERSHIP, HOME HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE WITH AIDS, EMERGENCY SOLUTIONS, GRANT, UM, EMERGENCY SOLUTIONS, GRANT CARES, ACT HOME AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN AND LEAD HAZARD REDUCTION AND THE EMERGENCY RENTAL ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAM FOR THE 20 21 20 22 PROGRAM YEAR FOR THE OFFICE OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, CONDEMNATION INTRODUCTIONS NUMBER NINE, DAVID W STERLING IRREVOCABLE TRUST 3 0 4 7 MIDWAY AVENUE, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLE, NUMBER 12, UH, NUMBER 10, JOHN T. ROBINSON AND MARGARET ROBINSON, 3 1 2 8 CHIPPEWAS STREET COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLE NUMBER 11, LEE HAWKINS, THE THIRD AND FARM CO INCORPORATED.
7 0 4 NORTH PORT 46TH STREET COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLE, NUMBER 12, MARK LANGLEY AND CALVARY LLC.
2 7 6 1 6 5 HOGAN COUNCIL DISTRICT ONE, NO NUMBER 13, ANDREW CHOIR AT AL 137 NORTH 47TH STREET COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN COLD NUMBER 14, JESSE MULLAND AND L 1 7 0 5 AND 1 7 0 7 GRACIE STREET COUNCIL DISTRICT 10 COALMINE NUMBER 15, CARRIE LYNN FORD AND PAMELA BETHY FORD 3 1 3 0 LORRAINE STREET, COUNCIL DISTRICT 10 COLEMAN NUMBER 16, VINTON HANCOCK TWO, NOT 2 5 9 0 0 CANDLEWOOD DRIVES COUNCIL DISTRICT NINE, HUDSON NUMBER 17, F L C H LLC, 2 3 2 3 NORTH FLANNERY ROAD, COUNCIL DISTRICT SIX DUNN JR.
NUMBER 18, MICHAEL S. STEPHENS AT L 4 5 2 5 OAKTON DRIVE COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE HURST NUMBER 19 TIMOTHY DE ANGELO AT L 4 7 63 CLAYTON STREET COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE HURST NUMBER 20, THE ESTATE OF KENNETH GOMEZ, 1 4 3 8 3 LILAC STREET COUNCIL DISTRICT FORM OAK NUMBER 21, ROSEMARY WILLIAMS 3 2 4 0 OSWEGO STREET, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN,
[00:10:01]
COLE NUMBER 22, GERALD CHARLOTTE 4 4 7 2 CLAYTON STREET, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLD NUMBER 23, CHARLES RAY RISER JR.AT L 3 7 6 PEACHTREE BOULEVARD, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLD NUMBER 24, BRANDON GU GOLSON AT L 7 4 2 8 RICHIE DRIVE COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE, HEARST NUMBER 25, LEON DAVIS, 5 6 8 8 MADISON AVENUE, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLD NUMBER 26.
AMANDA TROST CLAIRE 3 0 3 9 MIDWAY AVENUE, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN, COLE NUMBER 27, BENNY 2 0 5 3 VIRGINIA STREET COUNCIL CEDRIC 10 COLEMAN NUMBER 28 K D H GROUP LLC, 2 5 1 3 YAZOO STREET, COUNCIL CHAIR, 12 ROCCA ADJUDICATED PROPERTY INTRODUCTIONS NUMBER 29, LOT 10 DASH A SUBDIVISION PETTIT PLACE.
NUMBER 30 LOT 17 SUBDIVISION BELFAIR HOMES, COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN COLE NUMBER 31 LOT THREE SQUARE 34 SUBDIVISION EAST GARDEN CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 10 COLEMAN NUMBER 32 LOT 48 SUBDIVISION.
DON WOULD COUNCIL DISTRICT FOUR, MOKE NUMBER 33 LOT SIX SUBDIVISION WINDS REPLACED COUNCIL DISTRICT SIX DUNN JR.
NUMBER 34 LOT 25 SUBDIVISION WINDS REPLACE COUNCIL DISTRICT SIX DUNN JR.
NUMBER 35 LOT 15 SQUARE 34, A SUBDIVISION EAST GARDEN CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 10 COLEMAN NUMBER 36 LOT F SQUARE 58 SUBDIVISION UNIVERSITY PLAYS COUNCIL DISTRICT TWO BANKS NUMBER 37, LOT 54 AND 55 SQUARE, FOUR SUBDIVISION EATON PLACE COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN COLD NUMBER 38 LOT 1,818 B SUBDIVISION.
BRIAN STATES, COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE HURST NUMBER 39, LOT 28 AND 20 B SUBDIVISION.
BRIAN, A STATE'S COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE HURST NUMBER 40 LOT, 2 26 SUBDIVISION WOULD AIR COUNCIL DISTRICT TWO BANKS NUMBER 41 LOT.
ONE A SQUARE THREE SUBDIVISION FAIRFIELD COUNCIL DISTRICT TWO BANKS NUMBER 42 LOT 21 SQUARE THREE SUBDIVISION FAIRFIELD'S COUNCIL DISTRICT SEVEN COLE NUMBER 43 LOT TWO SUBDIVISION FIVE L SCOTT CONDOMINIUM COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE HEARST NUMBER 44, LOT 25 SQUARE, 19 SUBDIVISION EAST FAIRFIELD COUNCIL DISTRICT 10 COLEMAN NUMBER 45 LOT 20 SQUARE 49 SUBDIVISION STANDARD HEIGHTS COUNCIL DISTRICT SIX DUNN JR.
ALL ITEMS REQUIRE READING AND READ AND MOTION TO INTRODUCE ALL ITEMS AS AN ORDER MOTION TO INTRODUCE ART.
IF SOMEONE BE DONE SECOND TO BRIAN MOROSE, ANY OPPOSITION HAVING NONE MOTION CARRIES COUNCIL MEMBERS, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE SOME ITEMS UP AS A RESULT OF SOME FOLKS TRAVELING IN AND NEEDING TO TRAVEL BACK OUT BEFORE THE WEATHER GETS BAD ON THE EAST COAST.
[150. 22-00099]
SO IF YOU COULD TURN TO PAGE 29, WE'RE GOING TO GO TO ITEM ONE 50 IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE ORDINANCE 1 6, 4, 4 TO DECIDE IT MUST BE DECLARED EMERGENCY BY TWO THIRD CODE AND THE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL.UH, LET ME READ THE ITEM FIRST, A SPECIAL BRIEFING ON THE ADMINISTRATION'S EFFORT TO COME BACK CRIME.
AND HE SPENT WAS PARIS BY MAYOR.
PRESIDENT SHARON WAS TO IMPROVE, UH, REASON FOR THE EMERGENCY TO PROVIDE A BRIEFING TO THE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL AND THE PUBLIC IN ACCORDANCE WITH ORDINANCE 1, 6 44 TO DECIDE IT MUST BE DECLARED AN EMERGENCY BY TWO THIRDS VOTE OF THE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL.
IS THERE A MOTION TO DECLARE THE ITEM AND EMERGENCY? SO MOVED BY COUNCIL MEMBER, DON SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ADAMS. UH, WE'RE GOING TO VOTE ON A MOTION DECLARED EMERGENCY.
IS THERE ANY OPPOSITION TO THE ITEM BEING DECLARED EMERGENCY? UH, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING ON THE ITEM.
IS THERE ANYONE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON ITEM ONE TO 50? ANYONE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON ITEM ONE 50.
WE NOW GO TO MAYOR, PRESIDENT SHARON, WESTERN BROWN.
SOMEBODY IS HERE WISHING TO SPEAK.
DO YOU WANT TO HIT A REPORT FIRST BEFORE YOU SPEAK? YEAH.
SO WE'LL GO WITH THE REPORT FIRST AND THEN WE'LL TAKE, UH, COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC MAY PRESIDENT.
THANK YOU, MR. PRO TIM, WE ALSO HAVE SOME FOLKS HERE FROM THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS, SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY WERE GOOD WITH TIME.
AND I WAS JUST TOLD THAT THEY ARE OKAY IF NOT, I WOULD HAVE FIELDED TO THEM.
UH, BUT CERTAINLY THANK YOU ALL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
UH, THIS AFTERNOON TO, UH, DISCUSS PUBLIC SAFETY IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AS YOU KNOW, UH, SINCE 2017, IT HAS BEEN MY INTENTION TO CONTINUE, UH, THE WORK OF TRANSPARENCY WITH OUR ADMINISTRATION.
AND, UH, WE ARE DOING THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
OF COURSE, THIS TRANSPARENCY INCLUDES PUBLIC SAFETY, AND I KNOW OUR RESIDENTS AND METRO COUNCIL DESERVE TO RE UH, RECEIVE UPDATES ON THE FULL PICTURE AS IT RELATES TO VIOLENT CRIME AND THE ACTIONS THAT WE WERE TAKING TO KEEP SAFETY AT THE FOREFRONT OF EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH.
[00:15:01]
ROUGE IS ONE OF 15 CITIES IN THE WHITE HOUSE, COMMUNITY VIOLENCE, INTERVENTION, COLLABORATIVE, WHICH CONVENES MEETINGS FACILITATE SPIRIT OF PEER LEARNING AND PROVIDES TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO CITIES WITHIN THE COLLABORATIVE.THIS COLLABORATIVE EMPOWERS OUR BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND PUBLIC SAFETY TEAM TO SHARE IDEAS, EXPERIENCES, AND BEST PRACTICES IN ORDER TO MAKE OUR ONGOING INITIATIVES AS EFFECTIVE AS POSSIBLE.
IN ADDITION TO THIS INTER CITY COLLABORATION, WE ARE CONNECTING WITH PHILANTHROPIC ORGANIZATIONS TO PROVIDE TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, IDENTIFY BEST PRACTICES, INTEGRATE PROVEN, AND INNOVATIVE PUBLIC HEALTH APPROACHES AND HELP THE PARTNER CITIES SCALE AND CONDUCT THESE EFFORTS.
THIS PARTNERSHIP IS ONE OF THE WAYS IN WHICH WE ARE EMPOWERING AND STRENGTHENING THE WORK OF OUR ADMINISTRATION, OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT AND OUR COMMUNITY-BASED PUBLIC SAFETY ORGANIZATIONS.
NOW, ONE OF OUR SUPPORT PARTNERS IS THE COUNCIL ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE, WHICH WORKS TO ADVANCE UNDERSTANDING OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE POLICY CHOICES, FACING THE NATION AND BUILD SOLUTIONS TO ENHANCE SAFETY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
I RECENTLY, ALONG WITH 500 OTHER PEOPLE IN AMERICA ATTENDED A WEBINAR THAT THEY HOSTED SAVING LIVES, 10 ESSENTIAL ACTIONS THAT CITIES CAN TAKE TO REDUCE VIOLENCE.
NOW, YOU ALL HAVE A COPY OF THIS REPORT IN THE PACKET THAT WE JUST PROVIDED YOU NOW, WHILE WE STILL HAVE ROOM TO GROW, IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT BATON ROUGE HAS ALREADY ACCOMPLISHED MULTIPLE ACTION STEPS THAT WERE HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS WEBINAR, AS WELL AS THE REPORT THAT I JUST GAVE YOU.
THE FIRST SENTENCE READS AS 2022 BEGINS AMERICA CITIES CONFRONT AN ONGOING SURGE IN VIOLENT CRIME, PARTICULARLY HOMICIDES THE COUNCIL ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE DOCUMENTED A 30% RISE IN MURDERS NATIONWIDE IN 2020 WHILE POLICE DATA FROM LARGE CITIES REVEALS ANOTHER 7% INCREASE IN 2021.
EARLIER THIS MONTH, LSU CRIMINOLOGISTS, DR.
PETER SCHARF SPOKE TO W AFB ABOUT HIS FEAR THAT THE CURRENT RATE OF VIOLENCE APPEARS TO SHOW NO SIGN OF SLOWING DOWN ANYTIME SOON.
AND IT IS APPARENT THAT PUBLIC SAFETY AND CRIME EXPERTS ACROSS OUR NATION AGREE VIOLENT CRIME IS ON THE RISE IN OUR NATION.
NOW I WANT TO MAKE THIS EXTREMELY CLEAR.
IT IS PAST TIME FOR US TO WAKE UP AND UNDERSTAND THE REALITY OF THE SITUATION THAT WE'RE IN.
WE CAN'T AFFORD TO SIT BACK AND LET THE WEIGHT OF VIOLENCE FALL ON ONE PERSON, ONE AGENCY OR ONE ORGANIZATION.
THE EXPERTS HAVE STATED THIS WILL CONTINUE FOR THE TIME BEING, BUT I'M ENCOURAGED THAT WE ALL HAVE A FIGHTING CHANCE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND SO THAT MEANS THAT WE ALL HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER TO CREATE AN IMPLEMENT SOLUTIONS.
SO YOU'LL FIND THAT THIS REPORT HIGHLIGHTS THE APPROACH OF HOUSING, STRATEGIC RESPONSIBILITY FOR VIOLENCE REDUCTION EFFORTS AT THE TOP IS CITED ON NUMBER SIX.
ONE OF MY TOP PRIORITIES AS YOUR MAYOR PRESIDENT IS TO COMPREHENSIVELY TAKE ACTION TO REDUCE VIOLENT CRIME NOW.
AND SO TO DO THIS, WE HAVE FOCUSED EFFORTS ON BUILDING AN ECOSYSTEM OF PUBLIC SAFETY BUILT UPON LAW ENFORCEMENT, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, ALONG WITH MENTAL HEALTH AND OTHER SOCIAL SERVICES, THE LEADERSHIP WITHIN OUR ADMINISTRATION, THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, AND THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY CONNECT ON A WEEKLY BASIS.
AND THIS WILL CONTINUE AS WE WORK TOWARDS POSITIVE RESULTS IN OUR PARISH.
I ALWAYS BELIEVE THAT WE ARE STRONGER TOGETHER, AND THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE AS IT RELATES TO PUBLIC SAFETY.
SO WE'VE MADE VALUABLE STRIDES AND INVESTMENTS IN ADDRESSING POVERTY, INEQUALITY, AND OTHER UNDERLYING SYSTEMIC CAUSES OF VIOLENCE THROUGH THE LENS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACHES THE COUNCIL ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE REPORT ALSO IDENTIFIED THE NEED FOR BOTH A SHORT-TERM AND A LONG-TERM APPROACH.
THE FOUNDATION OF THIS VIOLENCE REDUCTION IS ALREADY INACTION AMONG OUR CITY PARISH GOVERNMENT, OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES AND JUDICIAL PARTNERS.
THIS COLLABORATIVE EFFORT WILL CONTINUE TO TAKE THE BEST OF WHAT WE ALREADY ARE DOING, THAT WE KNOW IS WORKING, AND WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO IDENTIFY WHAT WE NEED TO DO TO CHANGE.
[00:20:01]
I STAND BEFORE YOU IN COLLABORATION WITH OUR PUBLIC SAFETY LEADERS FOR EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH, I'M JOINED TODAY BY DISTRICT ATTORNEY HILLAR MOORE, THAT CITY POLICE, CHIEF MURPHY, PAUL AND EAST BATON ROUGE, PARISH SHERIFF'S OFFICE MAJORS, TODD MORRIS, AND MAJOR ANTHONY PANTANO WHO ARE HERE ON BEHALF OF SHERIFFS, SID, BOTH TROPE.AND SO NOW LET'S TALK ABOUT THE WORK THAT IS HAPPENING NOW AND OUR SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM ACTIONS.
I'M GOING TO ASK THAT CHIEF PAUL MAJOR MORRIS AND MAJOR PANTANO COME UP IN THAT ORDER.
I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME SO WE CAN DISCUSS SOME OF THE COOPERATIVE EFFORTS OF THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO REDUCE CRIME IN OUR CITY.
UH, FIRST I WANT TO THANK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT OF THE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND ALL THE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS IN OUR COMMUNITY, SPECIFICALLY FROM YOUR APPROVAL, FROM MY AA OR P DOLLARS, UH, THE MERIT INCREASES AND THE RAISES THAT, UH, WERE LED BY MAYOR OVER THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF.
I TELL YOU YOUR SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED.
A STRATEGIC PLAN REQUIRES A HOLISTIC APPROACH WITH AN EMPHASIS ON PREVENTION, INTERVENTION, AND ENFORCEMENT, AND IT INVOLVES NOT JUST LAW ENFORCEMENT, BUT A RESPONSE INVOLVING ALL STAKEHOLDERS, EDUCATION, BUSINESS, FAITH-BASED COMMUNITY, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, OTHER DISCIPLINES IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM, OUR LEGISLATIVE BODIES AND OUR MOST IMPORTANT PARTNER, THE COMMUNITY THAT WE SERVE, I WANT THIS BODY AND OUR COMMUNITY TO KNOW THAT THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT IS WORKING HARD WITH ALL OF OUR PARTNERS THAT I JUST MENTIONED TO REDUCE CRIME IN OUR COMMUNITY.
OUR STRATEGIES ARE BASED AROUND BOTH COMMUNITY LED INITIATIVES AND POLICE LED INITIATIVES.
AND FOR THE FIRST TIME, OUR MAYOR IS LEADING AN EFFORT WHERE ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES WILL BE WORKING WITH SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS TO CREATE AN EAST BATON ROUGE STRATEGIC PLAN, TO REDUCE VIOLENCE INCLUSIVE OF EVERY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.
SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP ON THAT MAYOR OUR EFFORTS OVER THE PAST YEAR, UH, WE'VE NOT ONLY HAD TO ADDRESS THE INCREASE IN HOMICIDES AND SHOOTINGS, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE SAW AND I WANTED TO SAY IT BECAUSE I KNOW I RECEIVED A LOT OF COMPLAINTS FROM SOME OF YOU HERE TODAY.
UH, STREET RACING AND LARGE GATHERINGS WAS SOMETHING THAT BEGAN TO HAPPEN EVER SINCE, UH, THE EPIDEMIC.
AND WE HAD TO ADDRESS THOSE EFFORTS BECAUSE WHEN WE SHUT DOWN THE COMMUNITY, OUR YOUNG FOLKS WERE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO DO.
AND UNFORTUNATELY WE RECEIVED A LOT OF COMPLAINTS, BUT I WANTED TO SHARE THE DATA.
UH, WHEN I RECEIVED THOSE COMPLAINTS OF STREET RACING AND GATHERINGS, WE, UH, HAD A DIRECTED PATROL EFFORTS IN LOCATIONS WHERE WE RECEIVED FROM THE COMMUNITY AND WE WROTE 460 CITATIONS.
WE SEIZE 89 VEHICLES WERE TOLLS 24, FORETOLD, 27 GUNS.
AND SEVEN OF THOSE WERE ASSAULT RIFLES.
I WANTED TO SHARE THAT DATA WITH YOU, BUT THROUGH OUR REAL TIME CRIME CENTER AND OUR CRIME STRATEGY UNIT, WE'VE TAKEN A DEEP DIVE INTO THE DATA THAT HIT, THAT HAVE, THAT ARE RELATED.
THAT'S RELATED TO SHOOTING INCIDENTS AND OUR NUMBER ONE STRATEGY THIS YEAR AND LAST YEAR IS TO FEEL THE VACANCIES WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT.
WE NEED BOOTS ON THE GROUND, UH, FOR THESE STRATEGIES TO WORK, WE HAVE TO FEEL THESE VACANCIES.
THAT IS OUR NUMBER ONE PRIORITY.
WE MET WITH OUR CHIEF ADVISORY COUNCIL YESTERDAY AND ASKED EACH ONE OF OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS, UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS ON THE CHIEF ADVISORY CONSOLE TO BRING TWO NAMES.
IT'S G E A U X, PLEASE WRITE IT DOWN.
IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS A HEART TO SERVE, PLEASE LEAD THEM IN OUR DIRECTION.
THIS IS A GREAT REWARDING CAREER.
[00:25:01]
TO HIGHLIGHT SEVERAL STRATEGIES.FIRST OFF FEDERAL TASK FORCE PARTICIPATION WITH OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS.
YOU MAY NOT KNOW THIS, BUT WE HAVE THREE BRP D OFFICERS ASSIGNED TO THE SAFE STREETS, TASK FORCE RIGHT HERE IN BATON ROUGE.
AND THEIR MISSION IS TO BUILD AND DEVELOP COMPLEX INVESTIGATION CASES ON GANGS AND DRUG ORGANIZATIONS, BOTH LOCALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY.
ONE OF OUR DETECTIVES HANDLES LOCAL DRUG AND ORGANIZED CRIME CASES.
AND ONE DETECTIVE ROLE IS NOW, UH, TO ASSIST LOUISIANA STATE POLICE WITH GANG VIOLENCE IN AN EFFORT TO LOWER VIOLENCE IN THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE, WE HAVE FOUR BRP DETECTIVES ASSIGNED TO THE DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION, AND THEIR MISSION IS TO COMBAT STATEWIDE DISTRIBUTION OF NARCOTIC CASES WITH A SPECIFIC NEXUS TO BATON ROUGE, AS WELL AS DEVELOPED CASES THROUGH THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY, AS WELL AS SOPHISTICATED INVESTIGATION TOOLS TO DISRUPT AND DISMANTLE GROUPS INVOLVED IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF ILLEGAL NARCOTICS AND VIOLENT CRIME TO SPECIFIC, UH, TASK FORCES THAT THEY'RE ASSIGNED TO.
ONE IS THE TACTICAL DIVERSION SQUAD AND THEIR ROLE IS TO FIGHT THE OPIOID EPIDEMIC WITH THEIR MAIN FOCUS ON FENTANYL IS FENTANYL IS THE, UH, DRUG THAT IS INVOLVED IN ALL OF THE FATALITIES AND OVERDOSES THAT WE'RE SEEING IN BATON ROUGE.
ONE DETECTIVE, UH, HAS A CANINE AND HE CHECKS PACKAGES AND PARCEL SERVICES AND STATIONS TO INTERCEPT NARCOTICS PACKAGES BEING SHIPPED ILLEGALLY AS WELL AS MONEY SEIZURES.
UNFORTUNATELY, UH, THERE ARE CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE USING PARCEL SERVICES TO DISTRIBUTE DRUGS AROUND THE, THE GULF COAST HEIDI INITIATIVE, WHERE THEY'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR INTERSTATE AND ADDICTION, AS WELL AS STATE AND FEDERAL MONEY SEIZURES.
WE HAVE THREE OFFICES ASSIGNED TO OUR FUGITIVE TASK FORCE WITH THE U S MARSHALS WHOSE SOLE JOB IS THE APPREHENSION OF FUGITIVES ALONG WITH OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERS.
I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT OUR WORK WITH ATF DA, UH, IN THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, IN OUR CRIME GUN INTELLIGENCE CENTER, WHERE WE ARE TRACKING ALL OF THESE GUNS, ALL OF THESE SHOOTING INCIDENTS AND WHAT WE'RE SEEING THERE AREN'T RELATED.
WE HAVE MET WITH OUR PARTNERS AND I'LL TALK ABOUT THAT SHORTLY, BUT I WANT TO, BEFORE I GET INTO THAT BEAT AND I WANT TO TALK ABOUT OUR P AND I ARE PLACED NETWORK INVESTIGATION, AND THAT IS A LONG-TERM STRATEGY WHERE WE'RE NOT ONLY LOOKING AT THE CRIMES, WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT WHAT, HOW CRIME RELATES TO CERTAIN PLACES.
FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAVE CHRONIC AREAS AREAS WHERE WE'VE SEEN CHRONIC VIOLENCE IN OUR CITY AREAS OR HOUSES THAT WE'VE CONDUCTED SEARCH WARRANTS ON MULTIPLE TIMES, WHAT'S DRIVING THAT LOCATION RIGHT THERE, HIDDEN NETWORKS.
SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT IS BEING LED, UH, THROUGH, UH, COURTNEY SCOTT, AS WELL AS, UH, DOW GESELL, UH, AS WE PREPARE TO IMPLEMENT THAT LONGTERM TERM STRATEGY, UH, IN REDUCING, UH, VIOLENCE IN OUR CITY, OUR PATROL STRATEGIES, OUR PS, ONE STRATEGIES WHERE WE ARE PLACING POLICE OFFICERS IN SPECIFIC PLACES, BASED ON THE INTELLIGENCE, BASED ON OUR, UM, OUR REAL TIME CRIME CENTER DATA, UH, THROUGH THE WORK OF THE INFORMATION SERVICES AND CREATING DASHBOARDS.
WE HAVE SEEN SOME SUCCESS WITH THAT, THAT I'LL SHARE WITH YOU SHORTLY.
OUR SPI INITIATIVE, WHERE OUR PRIMARY GOALS IS TO DECREASE VIOLENT CRIME AND ENHANCE COMMUNITY RELATIONS IN THE LAW ENFORCEMENT COMMUNITY.
AND THEN THERE'S OUR FOCUS DETERRENCE EFFORTS IN OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH TRUCE, WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO IDENTIFY THOSE AT-RISK YOUTH AND HELP THEM, UH, BY MEETING WITH THEM, BY REFERRING THEM TO SERVICES SO THAT WE CAN PREVENT THEM FROM GETTING CAUGHT UP IN THE VIOLENT CRIME THAT WE'RE SEEING IN OUR COMMUNITY, UH, SUPPORTING THE MIRROR, SAFE, HOPEFUL, HEALTHY BATON ROUGE INITIATIVE.
THAT'S THE PREVENTION, THE INTERVENTION.
NOW LET ME TALK ABOUT THIS ENFORCEMENT PIECE, CAUSE THAT'S, WHAT'S KEEPING A LOT OF YOU UP AT NIGHT.
MY PHONE RINGS EVERY TIME THERE'S AN HOMICIDE.
THE MAYOR PHONE RINGS EVERY TIME THERE'S ON A SIDE.
SO WHEN WE SAID KEEPS US UP AT NIGHT, LITERALLY IT DOES ON JANUARY 4TH, I MET WITH ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERS IN MY OFFICE, EBR SHERIFF'S OFFICE, THE FBI, DEA, ATF, LSP, US MARSHAL'S OFFICE, US ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, CONSTABLE'S OFFICE, THE DA'S OFFICE.
AND DURING THIS MEETING, WE IDENTIFIED ACTIONABLE ITEMS THAT WILL ASSIST US IN REDUCING CRIME AND BATON ROUGE.
AND THIS IS HOW THOSE CONVERSATIONS WENT.
WHEN I SHARED WITH THE MAYOR AND I TALKED TO THE MAYOR ABOUT THESE STRATEGIES, SHE'S LIKE, WELL, IS IT WORKING? WHAT CAN WE DO TODAY, CHIEF?
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I WANT THESE NUMBERS TO GO DOWN.WHAT ARE WE DOING? DIFFERENT? WHAT ARE WE DOING DIFFERENT? SO WE HAD A HEART-TO-HEART CONVERSATION.
IT GOT A LITTLE EMOTIONAL WITH MY FEDERAL PARTNERS AND WE, WE PUT EAGLES TO THE SIDE, WE PUT JURISDICTIONAL ISSUES TO THE SIDE AND THEN SUM IT UP.
UH, ACTIONABLE THINGS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT IS HOW WE GATHER INTELLIGENCE, CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE, INFORMATION, CRIMINAL DATA.
AND WE TALKED ABOUT SPECIFICALLY THINGS THAT WE CAN DO TO BETTER COLLECT THAT DATA ON THAT SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT'S INVOLVED IN CRIME AND THE MICRO AREA OF OUR COMMUNITY.
WE TALKED ABOUT DEA AND HOW THEY'RE GOING TO LEAD THE EFFORT WITH SOME NARCOTICS ENFORCEMENT AND VERY TARGETED AREAS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WE TALKED ABOUT THE FBI CONTINUING TO LEAD THE EFFORT ON SOME OF THESE COMPLEX INVESTIGATIONS INVOLVING THAT VERY KEY GROUP OF PEOPLE.
WE TALKED ABOUT THE US MARSHALL SERVICE WE'VE IDENTIFIED RIGHT AROUND 250 WARRANTS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE PUTTING TOGETHER A PLAN.
WE'VE IDENTIFIED A SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO WE BELIEVE ARE DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR.
WE DO NOT HAVE PROBABLE CAUSE YET TO ARREST THESE INDIVIDUALS.
IF WE DID, THEY WILL BE IN JAIL, BUT WE CREATED A PLAN.
AND THAT PLAN IS COOPERATION WITH STATE.
WE'VE ALREADY STARTED WITH OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LOUISIANA STATE POLICE, WHERE WE HAVE DIRECTED PATROL RIGHT NOW, THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT INTELLIGENCE HAS ALONG WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE INTELLIGENCE UNIT, ALONG WITH THE LOUISIANA STATE POLICE INTELLIGENCE UNIT OR GATHERING INTELLIGENCE, OUR OPERATIONS WILL BE LED BY THAT AND THOSE INTELLIGENCE EFFORTS, THE INTELLIGENCE THAT'S COMING IN IS COMING FROM OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT PARTNERS.
IT'S COMING FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
IT'S COMING FROM SOCIAL MEDIA DATA FROM OUR REAL TIME CRIME CENTER INFORMATION FROM THE LOUISIANA STATE POLICE FUSION CENTER DATA FROM THE EBR CRIME STRATEGY UNIT AND COMPLAINTS FROM THE COMMUNITY.
SO PLEASE, IF YOU SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING, IF YOU'RE HAVING ISSUES AND YOUR COMMUNITY, PLEASE GO TO CRIMESTOPPERS REPORTED.
ALL OF THAT INFORMATION IS PART OF OUR STRATEGY.
OUR STRATEGY WILL ALSO INCLUDE WEEKLY CUSTOM NOTIFICATIONS TO AT-RISK PERSONS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WE RECEIVE ACTIONABLE INTELLIGENCE ON INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY BE OUR NEXT VICTIM.
TODAY'S SUSPECT CAN BE TOMORROW'S VICTIM AND VICE VERSA.
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH THOSE AT RISK WEEKLY CUSTOM NOTIFICATIONS TO PREVENT THE NEXT SHOOTINGS FROM HAPPENING.
HOW DO I DIRECT IT? PATROLS? LOOK, YOU'RE GOING TO GET COMPLAINTS.
I WANT TO BE CLEAR OUR DIRECTED PATROL EFFORTS, A LOT TO OVER POLICE DISINVESTED COMMUNITIES.
IT'S NOT THOSE DIRECTED PATROLS OR TO HAVE PRESENCE IN THE PLACES WHERE CRIME IS LIKELY TO OCCUR AND IT'S TO WORK WITH THE PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY TO IDENTIFY WHO THOSE BAD ACTORS OR THAT'S WHY WE'RE GOING TO BE IN THOSE AREAS.
YOU'RE GOING TO SEE SRT, I'LL SWAP.
YOU'RE GOING TO SEE STREET CRIMES.
YOU'RE GOING TO SEE OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS.
YOU'RE GOING TO SEE HELICOPTERS.
WE ARE VERY, VERY DIRECTED AND I EFFORTS.
WE ARE FOCUSING ON REPEAT ADDRESSES THE HOUSES THAT HAVE BEEN SHOT UP THREE OR FOUR TIMES, THE INDIVIDUALS WHO WE'VE ARRESTED, BUT YET CONTINUE THEIR CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR.
SO I'M ASKING THIS BODY TO SUPPORT OPERATION RED STICK.
AS WE CONTINUE TO PUT THE FINAL TOUCHES ON THAT, EVEN THOUGH THE INTELLIGENCE PHASE HAS ALREADY STARTED, THAT'S A DIRECT RESPONSE TO WHAT'S GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
SOME OF THE INITIATIVE THAT THE MAYOR
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SPOKE OF ARE LONGTERM, AND WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A FINAL REPORT WHEN OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS LEAVE HERE THAT WILL BE MADE FOR PUBLIC CONSUMPTION AND YOU HAVE AN OUTLINE.I'M SURE THE MAYOR IS GOING TO PROVIDE TO YOU WHAT THAT STRATEGIC PLAN WILL LOOK LIKE.
UH, I'M MAJOR TODD MORRISON, CHIEF OF CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS AND SPECIAL OPERATION WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE HAVE MADE YOUR ANTHONY PANTANO HERE.
HE IS THE CHIEF OF OUR COMMUNITY POLICING UNIT, OUR STREET CRIMES UNIT, OUR WARRANTS DIVISION, OUR CORONERS INVESTIGATORS.
UM, ON BEHALF OF SHERIFF GO STRAIGHT.
HE SENDS HIS APOLOGIES FOR NOT MADE TO BE TODAY.
UM, BUT I WANT TO SHARE THEIR COUNSEL.
UH, AND SHERIFF GO-TOS TOO, THAT SHERIFF GOTO IS VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE RISE IN VIOLENT CRIME.
HERE THAT'S OCCURRED IN OUR PARISH.
UM, HE IS COMMITTED TO CONTINUED THE RESOURCES THAT HE HAS ALREADY TASKED OUT.
UH, CHIEF PAUL SPOKE ABOUT ALL THE VARIOUS TASK FORCE FROM DIFFERENT FEDERAL PARTNERS THAT HAVE THE PERSONNEL ON THOSE.
WE HAVE PERSONNEL ON THOSE TASK FORCE ALSO, AND WE'VE HAD FOR YEARS, UH, WE WERE GOING TO CONTINUE THAT RELATIONSHIP TO TARGET SPECIFIC INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS WHO ARE IDENTIFIED AS CAUSING VIOLENT CRIME IN OUR CITY.
UM, WE HAVE, UH, OUR COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM FROM MEASURE.
PANTANI JUST COMMUNITY POLICING, OUR STREET CRIMES UNIT.
THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO SHERIFF GAUTREAUX BECAUSE WE CANNOT DO THIS ALONE.
AS CHIEF PAUL SAID, IT TAKES A COMMUNITY EFFORT, A COMMUNITY APPROACH AND LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM HAS A VERY SMALL PORTION OF THIS PIECE OF THE PUZZLE.
AND SO SHERIFF GAUTREAUX HAS COMMITTED THOSE RESOURCES TO THAT.
UH, CHIEF PAUL TALK ABOUT, UH, SOME DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THAT WE'RE ALL INVOLVED INTO OUR PUBLIC SAFETY PARTNERSHIPS, OUR CRIME GUN STRATEGIES, UH, UH, PROGRAM OR CGI GROUP, UH, AS A RESULT THAT SHERIFF GAUTREAUX, UH, EXPANDED OUR ORGANIZATIONAL, HE CREATED A NEW POSITION AND WE HIRED A CERTIFIED FIREARMS EXAMINER.
WHO'S AT THE LOUISIANA STATE POLICE CRIME LAB, WHO IS A PART OF THIS INITIATIVE TO HELP US WITH OUR GUNS THAT WE'RE GETTING OFF THE STREETS.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT, UH, OUR INITIATIVES AND DATA ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE, WHICH IS WHAT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE AND WE HAVE USED WITH, ALONG WITH OUR PARTNERS, WE'RE GOING TO SPECIFIC AREAS BASED ON INTELLIGENCE, BASED ON DATA.
THOSE DIRECTORS HAVE BEEN VERY BENEFICIAL TO US IN OUR INVESTIGATIVE AND OUR EFFORTS TO COMBAT VIOLENT CRIME THIS YEAR ALONE.
UH, AS A RESULT OF THOSE DIRECTED EFFORTS TO THE SMALL AREAS, WE'RE HAVING ISSUES FROM OUR UNIFORM PATROL FROM OUR STREET CRIMES UNIT, FROM OUR DETECTIVES DIVISIONS, WE HAD AN INCREASE IN SEIZING 22% OF ILLEGAL GUNS USED IN ILLEGAL ACTIVITY WITHIN OUR PARISH.
AND THOSE GUNS WERE SEIZED NOT ONLY IN THE PARISH, BUT IN, WITHIN THE CITY ALSO TO CAUSE OUR STREET CRIMES, UH, MAJOR PONTOON HIS GROUP FOCUS, NOT ONLY IN THE PARISH, BUT IN THE CITY ALSO TOO, IN EFFECT TO ARREST AND SEIZE ILLEGAL GUNS WITHIN THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE ALSO.
SO THAT THAT'S A 22% INCREASE AS A RESULT OF WHAT WE HAVE IDENTIFIED AS AREAS AND POTENTIAL HOTSPOT AREAS THAT WE GO TO A DIRECTIVELY BASED ON THAT INTELLIGENCE AND BASED ON DATA, WHICH RECEIPT CHIEF PAUL TALKED ABOUT AND MENTIONED OUR CRIME STRATEGIES UNIT LED BY THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY MORE, THAT WAS A COM EFFORT FROM HIS, UH, BRAINSTORM AND NEW IDEAS.
A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THEY PUT OUT VERY GOOD INTELLIGENCE ON REVEREND SHORE SHOOTINGS AND SHOT SPIRES DATA.
AND ONCE AGAIN, WE REDIRECT OUR, OUR PATROL EFFORTS DAILY AND WEEKLY AS IT RESULTS TO THE INFORMATION THAT IS COMING IN.
UM, I THINK YOU HAVE SOME CHARTS THERE THAT ARE WITH YOU IN FRONT OF YOU ABOUT SOME NUMBERS AND CRIME DATA, UH, FROM OUR, FROM OUR, FROM THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE AND THE CITY POLICE.
I WANT TO BRIEFLY TALK ABOUT JUST A MINUTE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WE TALKED ABOUT ON NARCOTICS AND WE TALK ABOUT OUR OPIOID DEATHS AND WE TALK ABOUT OUR FIT AND ALL THAT ARE A BIG ISSUE.
NOW IN OUR OVERDOSES, OUR NARCOTICS DIVISION HAS BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS OF TARGETING MID AND HIGH LEVEL ORGANIZATIONS.
AND THEY HAVE BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL AT GETTING LARGE QUANTITIES OF NARCOTICS GUNS AND MONIES, WHICH OF COURSE FEEDS THE CONTINUED OPERATION OF THE NARCOTICS, UH, ILLEGAL TRADE HERE IN OUR AREA.
SO THAT HAS BEEN A VERY DIRECTIVE APPROACH THAT OUR NARCOTICS DIVISION HAS DONE AND BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL WITH THAT AND TARGETING MID AND UPPER LEVEL DEALERSHIPS AND ORGANIZATIONS.
AND SO THAT IS ANOTHER AREA THAT WE HAVE DONE DIRECTED PATROL AND, UH, KEVIN PENNER JENKINS HAS DONE AN EXCELLENT JOB OF DIRECTING HIS INVESTIGATIONS TO THOSE MID-LEVEL AND UPPER LEVEL DEALERS.
AND IT'S BEEN VERY BENEFICIAL AND WE'VE SEEN THE RESULTS OF THAT.
AND ALL THAT IS DONE BY INTELLIGENCE INTELLIGENCE IS A KEY COMPONENT OF THIS.
AND WE WORK INTELLIGENT ON A REGULAR BASIS WITH OUR COUNTERPARTS AT THE CITY AND THE STATE POLICE IN SHARING INTELLIGENCE, WHICH WE GET, NOT ONLY WE PASS IT ON TO THE APPROPRIATE, IF IT'D BE THE CITY POLICE, UH, CAPTAIN MICHELLI DOES A VERY GOOD JOB OF MEETING DAYS, MEET REGULARLY ON, I MEAN, SEVERAL TIMES A WEEK, THEY'RE MEETING TOGETHER AND PROVIDING INTELLIGENCE WHEN YOU TALKED ABOUT COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, UH, AND NOT ONLY DO WE PARTICIPATE IN OUR COMMUNITY, WALKS WHO FROM REVERENCE TO TRUCE, WE ALSO DO THOSE INDEPENDENTLY.
WE WERE HAVING SPIKE AREAS FOR MAJOR PONTON IN HIS GROUP.
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THERE THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO HAVE THE COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND MAKING THE CONNECTION WITH THE COMMUNITY.SO THEY WILL CALL AND INFORM US AND GIVE US INFORMATION, WHICH HAS BENEFICIAL TO IDENTIFYING THOSE THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR CRIMES AND VIOLENT CRIMES WITHIN THOSE AREAS.
AND THAT HAS BEEN VERY POSITIVE FROM US AND THE WALKS THAT WE DO ON A REGULAR BASIS TO OUR AREAS THAT WE FEEL LIKE, THAT WE NEED SPECIAL, MORE ATTENTION TO.
AND THEY'RE JUST SMALL AREAS WITHIN, YOU KNOW, A BIGGER SECTOR OF OUR PATROL DISTRICTS IN OUR AREAS THAT WE ARE DEALING WITH.
UM, SHERIFF GAUTREAUX HAS COMMITTED THOSE RESOURCES.
HE IS COMMITTED TO CONTINUE TO WORK COLLABORATIVE WITH ALBOURNE LOCAL STATE AND FEDERAL PARTNERS.
HE IS GOING TO CONTINUE TO DO THAT AT HIS DIRECTIVE, AND WE'RE DOING THAT.
AND WE'RE COMING IN WITH A PLAN WITH OUR PUBLIC SAFETY PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE'LL BE WORKING ON HERE IN, UH, THE 1ST OF FEBRUARY FOR A LONG RANGE PLAN.
BUT SHERIFF GO TRUST, COMMITTED THOSE RESOURCES.
HE'S COMMITTED HIMSELF AND ON OUR OFFICE AND WE TO CONTINUE THOSE EFFORTS.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT THOSE STATISTICS THAT YOU HAVE THERE IN FRONT OF YOU FROM THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, BECAUSE I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE, THE, A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I THINK ARE BENEFICIAL.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE INCREASE IN VIOLENT CRIME, I WANT TO ALSO TALK ABOUT THE INCREASE IN OUR CLEARANCE RATES AS IT RELATED TO THE NATIONAL AVERAGE AND WHAT WE'RE SEEING HERE LOCALLY IN BATON ROUGE FROM OUR SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
IF YOU LOOK AT OUR STATISTICS THERE, YOU SAW, UH, AN INCREASE IN OUR ROBBERIES, OKAY.
AND WE DID HAVE AN INCREASE, BUT ALSO WE HAVE AN INCREASE OF OUR CLEARANCE RATE.
WE CLEARED 54% OF THOSE ROBBERIES, BUT THE NATIONAL AVERAGE OF CLEARANCE FROM THE EL PASO, TEXAS IS ONLY 27.5%.
AND THIS PAST YEAR WE CLEARED 54% OF THOSE.
SO IF YOU LOOK AT THAT, WE'RE ALMOST DOUBLE THE PERCENT OF THE NATIONAL AVERAGE NATIONALLY FROM OUR BIG CITIES OR SMALL CITIES.
AND THESE ARE TAKEN BY THE FBI AND COMPOUNDED YEARLY OF THE, OF THE CRIME STATS THAT ARE OCCURRING.
IF YOU LOOK AT SEX OFFENSES, WE DECREASED IN OUR SEX OFFENSES THAT WE HAD REPORTED THE NATIONAL AVERAGE FROM THE FBI ON CLEARANCE ON SEX OFFENSES IS 31%.
OUR DETECTIVES SHERIFF'S OFFICER CLAREN 81 AND 83%, THE PAST YEARS OF OUR SEX OFFENSIVE CASES.
AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE CLEARANCE RATES OF A HOMICIDES, I KNOW YOU HAVE TO COMPARE APPLES TO APPLES, AND WE HAVE A SMALLER AMOUNT, BUT CONSISTENTLY, AND YOU GO BACK FOR YEARS, OUR HOMICIDE DIVISION CLEARS 80 TO 90% OF THE HOMICIDES.
IF YOU LOOK AT, FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF POST FROM THE SHOOTINGS AND SHOTS FIRED HOURS ARE ACTUALLY DOWN FOR A 20, 21 OVER 2020.
AND WE BELIEVE THAT'S A RESULT OF REDIRECTING OUR UNIFORM, PATROL OUR SCAT DIVISIONS IN OUR AREAS.
AND EVEN THOUGH IT IS A DECREE, A DECREASE, IT DID NOT INCREASE.
AND SO WE FEEL LIKE THAT WE'RE USING THAT INFORMATION THAT WE GET FROM NOT ONLY OUR INTELLIGENCE AND OUR DATA AND OUR CRIME STRATEGIES UNIT, AND WE'RE REDIRECTING THOSE PATROLS.
UH, SHERIFF GAUTREAUX IS COMMITTED TO THAT.
HE'S COMMITTED TO THIS PARISH.
HE'S COMMITTED TO ENSURING THAT, UH, HE USES EVERY RESOURCE THAT HE HAS NOW, AND HE WOULD CONTINUE TO DO THAT, TO ADDRESS THE VIOLENT CRIME AND EVEN NON-VIOLENT CRIMES IN OUR, IN OUR PARISH.
AND SO ON BEHALF OF HIM, THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE COMMITTED THESE RESOURCES AT THE DIRECTION OF SHERIFF GAUTREAUX.
AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO THAT WITH OUR LOCAL STATE AND FEDERAL PARTNERS TO ENHANCE OUR RESPONSIBILITIES.
THEY WILL ENHANCE OUR PLANS TO BE ABLE TO DO A SMALL FOCUS GROUP ON OUR INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBLE FOR COMMITTING THESE CRIMES.
AND THAT'S, WHO'S GOING TO BE OUR FOCUS, UH, CONTINUED FOCUS BECAUSE WE HAVE DONE THAT THIS PAST YEAR.
WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE THAT AND ENHANCE THAT WITH ALL OF OUR PARTNERS, BUT, BUT THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
AM I GOING TO HOLD Y'ALL TOO MUCH, BUT I WANT TO INTRODUCE THE CAPTAIN WALKER.
UM, THIS GUY DO AN EXCELLENT JOB, EH, UH, LIKE THEY AVERAGE 10 PEOPLE.
NOW THEY'RE DOWN TO SIX PEOPLE AND THEY COVERED THE WHOLE PARISH.
SO THEY, THEY, THE WHOLE PARISH.
SO NOT JUST SHERIFF'S OFFICE, BUT ALSO INSIDE THE CITY AND GET NUMEROUS CALLS.
AND WE'VE BEEN SEVERAL MEETINGS WITH A COUPLE OF YARDS ON THE BOARD AND SEVERAL WALKS WITH Y'ALL.
WE ENCOURAGE Y'ALL TO CALL US AND TO ENGAGE WITH US.
IF YOU DON'T TELL US, WE DON'T KNOW A BUNCH OF Y'ALL HAVE OUR NUMBERS, PLEASE CALL MYSELF OR CAPTAIN WALKER.
WE'D BE GLAD WE LOVE DOING THIS.
OUR HEART IS IN THIS, AND IT STARTS AT THE TOP WITH OUR BOSS.
HE LOVES THE COMMUNITY AND WE LOVE THE COMMUNITY.
SO IF YOU NEED US, CALL US, WE'RE THERE FOR Y'ALL THANK Y'ALL.
WE WANT TO, UH, THANK THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, UH, FOR COMMUNICATING, UH, THERE ARE STRATEGIES THAT THEY ARE EMPLOYING MANY OF THEM, OF COURSE, A NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED AS BEST PRACTICES AND COMBATING CRIME.
AND WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE GOING TO CONTINUE THEIR EFFORTS MOVING FORWARD.
UH, SOME OF THE STRATEGIES OF COURSE, INCORPORATE IN WHAT THEY'RE DOING, UH, ARE CALLED FOCUS, DETERRENCE STRATEGIES.
UM, YOU MAY RECOGNIZE A FOCUS DETERRENT STRATEGY AS TRUCE SIMILAR STRATEGIES HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO BE A SUCCESSFUL FRAMEWORK FOR CREATING SUPPORT FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE AT HIGH RISK OR INVOLVEMENT WITH VIOLENCE.
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GOING TO HAND THE FLOOR OVER TO OUR DISTRICT ATTORNEY HEALER MOORE, AND HE'S GOING TO DISCUSS THE WORK HE'S DOING TO HELP OUR COLLABORATIVE INSTILL ACCOUNTABILITY WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY.THANK YOU, MAYOR, MAYOR PRO TEM AND CONSTANT PEOPLE.
HOW ARE YOU DOING TODAY? SO, YEAH, BATON ROUGE HAD A REALLY BAD YEAR.
WE HAD ONE THE YEAR BEFORE, BUT LAST YEAR WAS PARTICULARLY BRUTAL, BUT I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT, UM, THE MURDERERS IS NOT RANDOM PARTNERS, PRETTY MUCH AMONGST FOLKS OF GROUPS, DRUG DEALING, GANGS, WHAT FORTUNATELY LAST YEAR, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND THE REVEREND ANDERSON IS HERE.
SHE CAN TALK A LOT ABOUT THIS LAST YEAR ALONE.
WE HAVE 35 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OR INTIMATE PARTNER RELATED HOMICIDES.
THAT'S AN OUTSTANDING NUMBER WHEN YOU KNOW, WE'RE LOOKING AT TWO OR FOUR IN A BIG YEAR.
SO A YEAR BEFORE, BUT THIS PAST YEAR 35.
SO I SAY THAT TO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, BATON ROUGE, YOU MAY NOT FEEL THIS PEOPLE AT ALYSSA MAY NOT FEEL OR TO, THIS IS ACTUALLY A SAFE PLACE UNLESS YOU ARE INVOLVED IN A GANG AND GANG DEALING INVOLVED IN DRUG ACTIVITY AND DRUG DEALING BECAUSE THAT INVOLVES CONS OR UNFORTUNATELY IN A BAD DOMESTIC RELATIONSHIP WITH ENDS IN VIOLENCE.
AND THAT COVID HAS JUST REALLY EXACERBATED EVERYTHING THAT WE SEE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT CRIME.
SO AS BAD AS THE NUMBERS ARE, IT'S A NATIONWIDE ISSUE.
IT'S NOT A NATIONWIDE FIX, IT'S A LOCAL FIX, BUT WE'RE SEEING THIS ALL OVER THE PLACE.
WHAT WE'VE SEEN THOUGH AT OUR OFFICE, FROM THE FILES THAT ARE BEING BROUGHT IN IS THAT THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF OUR CASES NOW ARE GUN-RELATED AROUND 2,500, AROUND 2,500 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RELATED CASES IN SOME WAY OR ANOTHER.
AND OUR STAFF HAS NOT KEPT UP WITH THE CHANGES.
SO WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT WAYS, HOW CAN WE CHANGE OUR STAFF ADDRESS GUNS AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IMMEDIATELY PUT AN END TO IT.
UH, AND WE'RE WORKING ON THAT NOW TO SEE IF WE CAN RESTRUCTURE FIRST THING I THINK THAT YOU GUYS NEED TO DO.
AND I KNOW YOU ARE WORKING ON THIS AS THE POLICE DEPARTMENTS, A HUNDRED FOLKS OR A HUNDRED AND SOMETHING DOWN.
CAN YOU IMAGINE OPERATING THAT LEVEL WITHOUT THAT MANY PEOPLE, THEY HAVE TO DRAW FROM OTHER AGENCIES AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS TO GO OUT AND FIGHT AND INVESTIGATE A HOMICIDE, BUT I'M SO PROUD TO STAND NEXT TO THE MEN AND WOMEN THAT HAVE BEEN HERE TODAY AND THE MAYOR TO WORK, PUT THE MEN AND WOMEN, THE OFFICERS, AND THE DEPUTIES TO WORK THEIR TAILS OFF ALL NIGHT LONG.
UH, AND THEY TRY TO DO THE BEST, BUT JUST THINK IF THEY WERE ABLE TO BE HEARD TO CLEAR IT'S RIGHT AT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, DON'T HAVE IT, THE NUMBER BY THE BATTERIES POLICE DO, BUT JUST THINK IF THE AVERAGE PLACE FOR COMPLETELY FULLY STAFFED, THEY HAD MORE THAN THEY HAD IN JUST THE HOMICIDE IN THE MAJOR ASSAULTS DIVISION.
IF YOU SAW THE CAUSE THAT THESE GUYS GO TO IT'S UNBELIEVABLE BECAUSE IT'S NOT ONLY MURDERS.
THEY GO, THEY GO TO SUICIDES DEATHS TO GO ON A DRUG OVERDOSES, BUT YOU ONLY REALLY GET TO SEE THE HOMICIDES JUST TAKE.
IF THOSE DETECTIVES COULD HAVE TEAMS OF DETECTIVES THAT WORK EVERY HOMICIDE LIKE JOHN F. KENNEDY WAS KILLED, LET'S TAKE THEIR CREDITS, RIGHT.
WOULD BE TO SEE IF THEY COULD DO THAT IN DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES OR NON-FATAL SHOOTINGS.
THINGS WOULD BE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT, BUT THAT UNFORTUNATELY TAKES A LOT OF MONEY AND A LOT OF EFFORT AND NOT EVERYBODY HAS THE MONEY TO PUT INTO THAT.
SO WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO FOCUS THIS YEAR ON FIREARMS AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
AND SOME OTHERS WE'VE TRIED TO FOCUS ON KEEPING THOSE FAKE FOLKS OR A THREAT TO PUBLIC SAFETY IN JAIL.
THOSE ARE OUT OF MULTIPLE BONDS.
CHURCHES HAVE VERY DIFFICULT JOBS TO DO WHEN THEY SET A BOND, BECAUSE THAT'S THE WAY PUBLIC SAFETY AND THE CRIME THAT'S FOR THEM WITH A PRESUMED INNOCENT AND THE RIGHT TO BAIL ON A BOND.
SO WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO DO A BETTER JOB OF INFORMING THE JUDGES AS MUCH AS WE CAN, BUT THEY HAVE A VERY DIFFICULT JOB TO DO.
WE RESPECT THAT, BUT WE'RE GOING TO DO BETTER AT THAT.
BUT OUR CHALLENGE EVERYONE IS THAT WE SPEND A LOT OF MONEY, A LOT OF GOOD THINGS.
WE HAVE A LOT OF KIDS IN YOUR DISTRICTS THAT ARE STRUGGLING RIGHT NOW, AND LOOK AT LOUISIANA, WHERE WE LOOK AT BATTERIES WHILE WE RANKED, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT EDUCATION, POVERTY, CHILDHOOD PREGNANCY, TRUANCY, EDUCATION, BY AND LARGE, AND WE'RE AT THE BOTTOM OR THE TOP OF EVERY LIST THAT WE SHOULDN'T BE AT, BUT WE'RE FIGHTING HOMICIDES ON ONE END.
WE'RE NOT REALLY FIGHTING ENOUGH ON THICK ON THE FRONT END FOR KIDS AND FAMILIES.
AS A RESULT, WE HAD TO MOVE MONEY AT THE BACK END FOR POLICE.
TA'S YOU NAME IT? SO I THINK UNFORTUNATELY, NOW WE HAVE TO WORK ON THE BACKEND.
WE HAVE SUCH A BACKLOG RIGHT NOW OF CASES, JUST MURDER CASES, OVER 200 TO BE TRIED IN OUR OFFICE LAST YEAR, WHERE WE WERE ABLE TO TRY 16 JURY TRIALS, EVEN BEFORE 12, BECAUSE OF COVID FEDERAL COURT ONLY HAD TWO.
SO THE BAD GUYS KNOW WHEN THAT SYSTEM GOES DOWN.
THEY KNOW THEY CAN GET AWAY WITH THINGS.
A PRISON POPULATION WENT FROM 2000 TO A THOUSAND.
AND I THINK FOR GOOD REASON FOR COVID RELATED REASONS.
AND AGAIN, WE'RE ONLY GOING TO KEEP THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE PUBLIC SAFETY THREAT IN JAIL, LET THE OTHERS ARE PENDING COURT,
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BUT I WOULD SUGGEST THAT WE NEED TO FIND A WAY TO WORK WITH OUR YOUTH THAT ARE HIGHLY AT RISK, AND THEN WAVING OUR HANDS AT US.LIKE I'M GOING TO BE TROUBLE WILL BE A PROBLEM AND EFFECT THAT WE CAN DO THAT.
I THINK WE SHOULD GENERATE THE FUNDS TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.
AND LIKE WE DID NAME IMAGE AND LIKE THIS FOR FOOTBALL PLAYERS THAT COME FROM THE SAME AREAS THAT OUR SHOOTERS WOULD COME FROM, BUT THEY'RE TALENTED PEOPLE THAT SOMEONE IS TAKEN THEM OUT OF WHERE THEY ARE AND PUT THEM A PEDESTAL.
AND THEY DOING WELL TO GET EDUCATED, TO GET DOCTORS, GET MEDICINE, GET EVERYTHING THEY CAN.
THE OTHER KID THAT WAS SITTING NEXT TO HIM AT SCHOOL THAT MAYBE DOESN'T HAVE THAT TALENT.
AND THE ONE THAT IS REALLY MOST, MOST AT RISK, BUT REALLY DON'T PAY A LOT OF MONEY, A LOT OF EFFORT TO HIM UNTIL THIS HAPPENS.
SO I THINK WE NEED TO EXAMINE ALL OF OUR SYSTEMS TO SEE MAYBE WHERE WE'RE FAILED IN THE PAST, WHERE THERE'S GAPS IN SERVICES.
WHY DID THAT KID EVER GET TO BE THAT POSITION? I THINK WE'LL BE BETTER OFF FOR THAT, BUT IN THE LONG RUN.
SO AS BAD AS THE LAST YEAR WAS A REALLY BELIEVED THAT NOW THAT THIS YEAR IS GOING TO BE A MUCH BETTER YEAR, I DON'T THINK WE CAN REPLICATE 35 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOMICIDES.
I THINK THAT BASED ON SOME MEMBERS, WOULD I GO INTO DETAIL NOW? I THINK THAT 20, 22 IS GOING TO BE A BETTER YEAR.
IT HAS TO BE BETTER YEAR, BUT THE ONLY WAY WE CAN MAKE IT BEST AS FOR ALL OF US TO WORK TOGETHER.
UM, I WANT TO THANK YOU, YOU GUYS, INDIVIDUALLY FOR WHAT YOU DO, ALL THE WORK THAT THESE OTHERS THAT YOU'VE HEARD BEFORE, ME THAT DO A LOT OF THINGS FALL ON YOUR SHOULDERS.
A LOT OF DELICATE ISSUES THAT COME HERE, IT'S ALWAYS COMES DOWN TO FUNDING.
AND I KNOW NOT EVERYONE ASKS FOR MONEY AS THEIR HANDOUT, WE ALWAYS DO SO.
UM, BUT UH, YOU HAVE GOOD PEOPLE THAT WORK FOR YOU IN THESE DIFFERENT OFFICES.
YOU SHOW, WE MESS UP, UH, AND YOU'LL SEE WHEN WE MESS UP OR WE TRY TO BE HONEST ABOUT WHEN WE MESS UP AND, UH, WHAT YOUR SUPPORT.
AND I THINK THAT THE, PARTICULARLY THE AREAS THAT ARE MOST EFFECTED THAT WE SEE MORE AND IT'S UNFORTUNATE THAT IT'S, WE ALWAYS SAY, OH, 2 0 5 0 6, BECAUSE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE IN THOSE ZIP CODES, THOSE SUBDIVISIONS, WHEN YOU WALK THROUGH, FUCK OUT THE DOOR, AND I GRABBED THESE PEOPLE AROUND THEIR NECK AND SAID, WHEN ARE YOU COMING BACK? AND THAT'S THE TRUTH OF IT.
THERE'S ONLY A VERY FEW SMALL NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THOSE ZIP CODES HURT THE MOST THAT CAUSED THE DAMAGE.
AND WE NEED TO DO THE BEST FOR THOSE PEOPLE.
SO YOU CAN GET ON THEIR PORCH AND HAVE A GOOD TIME AND A GOOD DAY, LIKE ALL OF US CAN AND OTHER ZIP CODES.
AND IT'S NOT FAIR TO PUT THEM OUT AS ZIP CODES, BUT THAT'S HOW WE DO.
SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORK WITH YOU IN THIS PUBLIC HEALTH APPROACH THAT WE HAVE.
WE'LL HAVE TO TREAT IT AS A PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM, JUST LIKE SEAT BELTS, JUST LIKE SMOKING.
YOU KNOW, THAT'S A PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY THAT THEY HAVE TO LOT A GUARD RAILS AROUND PREJUDICE, NEVER HAD THEM BEFORE, UNTIL PEOPLE STARTED DYING.
AND WE, WE HELPED TO PUT GUARD RAILS UP.
SO WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT 149 MURDERS? YOUNG KIDS ARE KILLING EACH OTHER.
WE NEED TO FIND SOME GUARD RAILS TO PUT AROUND THESE YOUNG MEN, YOUNG KIDS.
SO I'M HERE TO WORK WITH YOU GUYS IN THIS EFFORT AND WE HAVE A GREAT 2022.
AS WE CLOSE OUR PRESENTATION, UM, WE UNDERSTAND THAT, UH, WE CERTAINLY NEED TO ALLOCATE RESOURCES FOR COMMUNITY VIOLENCE, INTERVENTION INITIATIVES, AND YOUR HELP WITH YOUR SUPPORT.
UH, WE HAVE ALLOCATED AN ADDITIONAL $14.2 MILLION FOR COMMUNITY VIOLENCE INTERVENTION INITIATIVES.
SO FOR OUR LONG-TERM ACTIONS, WE'RE ALLOCATING $1.8 MILLION TO INCREASE THE BATON ROUGE, POLICE DEPARTMENTS, UH, TECHNOLOGY CAPABILITIES, INCLUDING FUNDING FOR A PLATE READERS AND COMMUNITY CRIME CAMERAS FOR OUR LONG-TERM ACTIONS, WE'RE ALLOCATING $3.3 MILLION TO IMPLEMENT GUN VIOLENCE, REDUCTION STRATEGIES, AND INCREASE COMMUNITY POLICING FOR OUR LONG-TERM STRATEGIES.
WE'RE ALLOCATING $8 MILLION FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF PATROL UNITS AND OTHER VEHICLES.
NOW WE KNOW THE SHORT TERM ACTIONS ARE NEEDED AND ARE VITAL RIGHT NOW.
WE'VE ALREADY ALLOCATED DOLLARS TO AID PROGRAMMING FOR OUR DA'S OFFICE, INCLUDING A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR CHANCE'S INNOVATIVE GUN VIOLENCE INTERVENTION PROGRAM, A HUNDRED THOUSAND WHERE THE EXPANSION OF THE HOSPITAL VIOLENCE INTERVENTION PROGRAM, AND 150,000 FOR THE INNOVATIVE OPEN YOUR WEIGHT PROJECT.
THIS PANDEMIC HAS CAUSED THEY BREAK DOWN AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
YOU HEARD IT FROM OUR DA, YOU HEARD IT FROM OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS.
OUR COURT SYSTEMS ARE BACKLOGGED LEADING TO DELAYS AND TRIALS, WHICH IS WHY WE ARE ALLOCATING
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$500,000 FOR ADDITIONAL SPECIAL PROSECUTORS AND PUBLIC DEFENDERS OR MATTERS RELATING TO THE ONGOING BACKLOG OF CASES, SHORT TERM ACTION.SO THIS ONCE IN A LIFETIME FUNDING THAT WE HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE TO RECEIVE, UH, WE'RE COMMITTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE USE A GREAT AMOUNT OF IT TO SOLVE THE VIOLENT CRIMES THAT WE FACE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND AS YOU'VE HEARD, IT TAKES COLLABORATION, DEDICATION, COMMITMENT FROM OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS, OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM, OUR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND OUR RESIDENTS.
OUR NEXT ACTION STEP WILL BE OUR STRATEGIC PLANNING WORKSHOP HOSTED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE IS NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY PARTNERSHIP.
THAT'S GOING TO TAKE PLACE THE FIRST WEEK IN FEBRUARY.
AND AS YOU HEARD, AND YOU HAVE THE INFORMATION IN YOUR FOLDERS AND SAY COORDINATED AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, UH, OFFERED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.
SO IT WILL HELP US ENHANCE BOTH OUR SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM STRATEGIES, BUT IT WILL ALSO PUT OUR ACTION ON PAPER AND IN THE FIELD.
SO WITH THAT BEING SAID, I BELIEVE THAT THE DATA THAT WE'RE USING, THE LAW ENFORCEMENT, OUR WORK COLLABORATIVE WITH EVERYONE INVOLVED IN SOLVING VIOLENT CRIME WILL TAKE US AS OUR DA SAID TO A BETTER 20, 22, UH, WE'RE USING THE BRAIN TRUST OF ALL OF OUR LOCAL EXPERTS TO ENSURE THAT WE LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED IN OUR EFFORT TO CREATE A SAFER BATON ROUGE.
AND I REALLY BELIEVE THAT THIS ALIGNMENT OF AGENCY'S RESOURCES AND GOALS WILL AID EVERYONE IN OUR MISSION TO KEEP OUR CITY AND OUR PARISH SAFE AND INFORMED.
UH, PUBLIC SAFETY IS INDEED A TOP PRIORITY AND I AM, AND I KNOW YOU WILL JOIN ME IN REMAINING STEADFAST IN A VISION OF CREATING A SAFE, HOPEFUL, AND HEALTHY BATON ROUGE FOR ALL OF OUR CITIZENS.