|
Crime Update:
Memphis City Crime Update: January 1 to July 2009
From January 1 to the end of July 2009, overall crime was down 15.1% including a drop in violent crime by 13.9% and a drop in property crime by 15.4% across the City of Memphis, when compared to the same time period in 2006.
Shelby County Sheriff's Office Crime Update: January 1 to July 2009
From January 1 to the end of July 2009, overall crime was down 1.3% including a drop in property crime by 1.8% across Shelby County when compared to the same time period in 2006.
Implementation of the strategic initiative to reduce crime, Operation: Safe Community began in 2006. Crime statistics and updates are systematically compared to 2006 as a benchmark for success towards full implementation of the 5-year plan.
Strategy
#8:
Implement mentoring-based truancy reduction program.
Team Leader: Harold Collins, District Attorney General’s Office
The District Attorney General’s Office is spearheading the Truancy-based Mentoring Program to offer habitually truant Memphis City School children mentors as an alternative to court proceedings.
The program is currently in 5 middle schools and to date 268 students with five or more absences have been referred to the program by Juvenile Court. Of those, 90 have accepted the invitation and 74 currently have mentors.
The Truancy-based Mentoring Program is continually recruiting mentors to provide consistent and quality interaction with a child for at least 8 hours a month. Interested individuals receive a half-day training session led by Harold Collins. Mentors also undergo a background check.
If you would like to become a mentor or if you would like a representative from the Truancy-based Mentoring Program to speak to your church, association or business about the importance of mentoring, please call Harold at 545-5900.
Also, Memphis City Schools has established a truancy hotline, 416-8111, and encourages the citizens of Memphis to call if you see school-aged children not in school during school hours. Children will be picked up by school personnel, not police, and taken to one of four Truancy Assessment Centers established by Memphis City Schools.
Strategy #11:
Expand and coordinate adult offender re-entry programs.
Team Leaders: A C Wharton, Mayor, Shelby County and Charles Traughber, Chairman, TN Board of Probation and Parole
On August 19, Mayor A C Wharton hosted the second annual Offender Workforce Development Roundtable at the Shelby County Correction Center (SCCC). Approximately 100 people representing the business and non-profit community as well governmental agencies attended the session that addressed topics including Work Opportunity Tax Credits and Federal Bonding, Partnerships and Re-entry and the Career Readiness Certification Process. Those in attendance were reminded that employing offenders who are re-entering our community contributes to public safety.
The featured speaker at the roundtable was Mr Don Loiacano, VP of Franklin Sports, who reviewed his company's program of hiring inmates who are participating in the 3R Project at SCCC. Since 2007, over 200 inmates have participated in the program and brought 1.7 million back into the local economy in salaries. Families of inmates have received funds when the inmates were employed. The offenders also paid room and board and transportation, child support and court fees.
For information on how to become involved, contact Stanley Lipford, 3R Project Director, at 377-4695
Memphis Shelby Crime Commission and its strategic initiative to
reduce crime, Operation: Safe Community has been accepted into
the National Network for Safe Communities.
The National Network for Safe Communities is a coalition of police chiefs, prosecutors, community leaders, service providers, mayors, street workers, scholars and others concerned about the impact of crime and current crime polices on communities.
The Network is designed to support its members by creating a national community of practice, raising the visibility of its members’ work, offering them technical support, recognizing and helping others learn from their innovations, supporting peer exchange and education, and conducting research and evaluations. It will be guided by the Leadership Group, a smaller group of jurisdictions that will convene teams regularly to address the core issues of the Network’s mission.
Operation: Safe Community Spearheaded by the
Memphis Shelby Crime Commission has a New Look!
This newsletter along with our website
are undergoing an exciting transformation. With the assistance of
Speak! Creative, the newsletter and website have been designed to be as
informative, concise and user-friendly as possible. The new
operationsafecommunity.org website will be launched by the end of
August!
Our goal is to ensure that the citizens of Memphis and Shelby County know about Operation: Safe Community and have the opportunity to be engaged in helping make our community safer.
|
The
last Tuesday of each month, Operation: Safe Community is
featured on WREG Channel 3's "Live at Nine" hosted
by Mary Beth Conley and Alex Coleman.
D’Arcy Deveaux Sr. of Pinnacle Airlines was the guest this month.
Mr. Deveaux along with 17 other Pinnacle Airlines employees recently completed a half-day mentoring session to participate in the Truancy-based Mentoring Program, Strategy 8 of Operation: Safe Community.
Stay Involved with some volunteer opportunities available from our partners ›
|
| |
|
Shelby County Domestic Violence Court News Conference
General Sessions Criminal Court Division 10
Tuesday, September 1, 2009 - 1 p.m.
Please plan to join us for a news conference to announce the opening of the Shelby County Domestic Violence Court in Judge Lee Wilson’s courtroom, General Sessions Criminal Court Division 10 at 201 Poplar, Lower Level. The new Domestic Violence Court, an essential component of Operation: Safe Community Strategy 14, will make an impact on families who experience violence.
Clean Memphis Upcoming Events
Clean Memphis along with various neighborhood associations, businesses and churches in the area are participating in community clean-ups. See some opportunities to volunteer below and visit www.cleanmemphis.org for more information.
September, 5 – Airways/Lamar
Saturday, September 12 – Wolf River Day
Saturday, September 26 – Elmwood/College Park/Lemoyne Owen
Project Safe Childhood and Family Violence Seminar
Sponsored by the Office of the U.S. Attorney
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Memphis, TN
Speakers for the event include Linda Cordisco Steele of the National Child Advocacy Center, Sarah Buel of the School of Law, University of Texas at Austin, Anne Seymour and Aurelia Sands Bell of Justice Solutions and Dan Newsom, Assistant United States Attorney. To register for the event please Click Here [PDF].
Raising
Families. Erasing Violence.
hosted by the Memphis/Shelby County Violence Council
October 1, 2009
5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Lindenwood Christian Church
A visual display artistically expressing the impact of domestic violence on families in Shelby County will be displayed as part of the SCDVC's Clothesline Project. This informational event will also feature guest speaker Susan Still.
Speakers Available for Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October, 2009
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. “Raising Families. Erasing Violence.” has coordinated a group of available community advocators to speak about the dynamics of domestic crime and the community’s response. To book a speaker for your meeting or event in October, please click here [PDF]
The State of the Child Conference 2009 Reception
Presented by the Tennessee Voices for Children
Sunday, October 17, 2009
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Be a part of this year’s conference, “Transforming Children’s Mental Health in Tennessee: Your Role in Connecting Systems!” The conference will run from October 18 – 21, 2009 in Nashville, Tennessee. For more information please visit http://www.tnvoices.org/soc.
|
|