News Release – Stockton Adopts Violence Reduction Initiative

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STOCKTON ADOPTS VIOLENCE REDUCTION INITITATIVE

Stockton Police Department Implements Community Response Team

(Stockton, CA) – The City of Stockton has experienced a sharp rise in violent crime. To address escalating violence, Stockton Police Chief Eric Jones proposed a “Violence Reduction Initiative” to the Stockton City Council this evening. The initiative proposes an alternative method of deploying police resources, including the implementation of a Community Response Team (CRT), beginning June 3, 2012. The Council approved the initiative, 7 – 0.

The Stockton Police Department is attempting to address the increase in crime, specifically targeting homicide, gangs, and gun violence. Citizens have publicly expressed the need for police presence in neighborhoods.

The CRT will provide a consistent approach to combating the on-going increase in violent crime by developing community partnerships in the areas where high-visibility and enforcement tactics will be deployed. Real-Time-Policing principles will be applied to adjust staffing and deployment, driven by intelligence and violent crime trend data. A camera system already installed throughout the city will be reactivated and used to monitor high-crime areas and deploy appropriate resources as conditions change. While flexible, the CRT will operate primarily during evening hours, which is the time of day that most violent crime occurs, concentrating on gun violence and gang incidents. The team may also be used to support long-term, covert operations targeting organized criminal street gangs.

Stockton Police Department staffing is at an all-time low. As resources are dedicated to the CRT to address the most violent situations, response to some calls for police service will be further impacted. For example, there will be reduced response to property crimes not in progress, and there will be a higher reliance on internet reporting as a means of communicating with the Police Department.

The goal of the Stockton Police Department is to build community trust, which is critical to any measure of success in our fight against crime.

“Chief Jones has shown tremendous leadership and creativity, during the most challenging times our City has ever experienced, by researching and developing methods of addressing crime with limited resources,” said Mayor Ann Johnston. “We know that he has the respect of the entire department and the community, and, together, they will make a difference in the violent crime that has had such an impact on city.”

The program is anticipated to cost $77,760 monthly in over-time and camera operations with a one-time cost of $5,000 to activate camera monitoring equipment.

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Information provided by the city of Stockton