Several cities add ‘violence interrupters’ to curb crime

WASHINGTON (NewsNation Now) — Amid record murder numbers in several cities and a surge in violent crime, some are making historic investments in “violence interrupters.”

Killings are up 30%, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and some have called for a crackdown on lawlessness and putting more police on the street.

However, after the murder of George Floyd by law enforcement sparked an outcry and calls for police reform, there is traction to find alternatives to policing.

In many cases, the interrupters are former criminals who bring street smarts to connect with people in neighborhoods struggling with crime and use mentoring and conflict resolution to try to prevent it.

Delbert McFadden is the director of the Washington, D.C., office that runs the violence interrupter program there. He said the interrupters have relationships within the community and have a deeper understanding of crime dynamics in neighborhoods.

This week, the nation’s capital announced 50 more employees who will take on the task as part of a $9.6 million investment of federal grant money.

And D.C. isn’t alone.

In the last few weeks, Louisville, Kentucky., Rochester, New York, and Indianapolis have announced expansions or new violence interrupter programs.

While success can be difficult to track, a similar program in Stockton, California, slashed gun assaults and homicides by 20%, according to a study by the University of California, Berkeley. 

Officials in Washington, D.C. said the neighborhoods with the program saw drops in the same crimes in 2020 and 2021.

While D.C. is satisfied with the success of this program in certain neighborhoods, homicides overall are at the highest they’ve been in 16 years — just over 200.