Mayor Keller Signs Executive Order Establishing Gun Violence Prevention and Intervention Task Force
Mayor Keller Signs Executive Order Establishing Gun Violence Prevention and Intervention Task Force
Friday, 10/22/2021
Task Force will complete Metro Crime Initiative action item, use public health lens to develop a comprehensive violence reduction strategy
ALBUQUERQUE – Today, Mayor Tim Keller signed an executive order, establishing a Gun Violence Prevention and Intervention Task Force. The task force will develop a comprehensive violence reduction strategy through a public health lens, one of the action items that emerged from the Metro Crime Initiative this summer. Representatives on the task force will include CYFD, Bernalillo County, City Council, Adult Probation and Parole; community organizations and individuals directly impacted by gun violence; and City departments including Albuquerque Community Safety, Albuquerque Police Department, Family and Community Services, and the Office of Equity and Inclusion.
“Turning the tide on gun violence will take immediate action, like strengthening laws for gun storage and gun crimes. It also takes a serious focus on root causes that keep people trapped in cycles of trauma and violence,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “This task force is one of the priorities that emerged from the Metro Crime Initiative this summer, as it becomes more clear that gun violence is a public health crisis. As parents, we understand how pressing this challenge is; no family should have to feel that fear when we drop our kids off at school.”
The task force will seek to enhance the strategy to reduce gun violence by examining and making recommendations for addressing gaps in the current response. This could include improving cooperation among city departments and outside entities, recommending substantive changes to policies and ordinances aimed at reducing gun violence, using culturally responsive trauma and equity informed frameworks to guide strategies, and exploring opportunities to increase services through grants and funding opportunities.
“We’ve done an incredible amount of work to reimagine our public safety system so that it works for everyone,” said Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair. “This taskforce is yet another way that we are focusing on our toughest challenges and working to address them head on in order to keep the entire community safe.”
Since January 2020, there are an average of 25 shooting with injury per month, up 13% since 2020 and so far in 2021, 77% of homicides involved a firearm. Trends also show that most victims are 20-30 years of age and are male. The Albuquerque Police Department tracks every shooting in Albuquerque and use them to coordinate and develop strategies with commanders from across the city every 24 hours.
“Gun violence is the main factor driving up crime in our city,” said Albuquerque Police Department Chief Harold Medina. “This taskforce is going to help us better understand the underlying causes so that law enforcement can stop acting as a band aid, and we can really address the challenges people are facing.”
“Gun violence is a public health crisis. It is devastating our communities and it’s a multifaceted problem that demands a multi-pronged approach,” said Miranda Viscoli, co-president of New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence. “This is an important step to bring people together to get creative in our solution building.”
The task force will produce actionable, equity-driven recommendations within a year of its inception. The full Executive Order is attached.
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