LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville’s homicide streak has not let up, nor has Louisville Metro Police Department's low morale.
In hopes of addressing both issues, city leaders are willing to give a violence intervention program more headway.
"We are seeing retaliatory shooting after retaliatory shooting,” said Councilman Bill Hollander, D-9, regarding the city’s current violent climate.
As of Wednesday, Louisville was one homicide away from matching last year's record of 173 victims.
Louisville once averaged about 54 homicides a year, but took the biggest turn in 2015 when the city surpassed 80 homicides.
Hollander believes the 'Violence Interrupters’ program, which takes ex-convicts or former gang members into the community to provide outreach to help fight crime, will help make Louisville safer.
"It's evidence based. It's worked throughout the country. It could work here — it is working here," said Hollander, who fought for this program before it was defunded a few years ago.
It was reintroduced over the summer when Metro Council launched a pilot program in two hard-hit locations.
"We are not getting much cooperative efforts with LMPD as we need, and they can tell you that this is something that can help," Hollander said.
Councilman Kevin Kramer, R-11, voted against giving the program $8 million from the American Rescue Plan during a Louisville Metro Council Budget Committee meeting on Monday.
“We made the mistake once before and you'd hate to spend money on something you know didn't work," said Kramer.
Last time around, council members learned LMPD was not consulted when interrupters were hired.
In 2019, Metro Council also learned one of the nonprofits that hired interrupters had been suspended for unauthorized purchases and questionable transfers of taxpayer funds.
The Louisville Urban League has been trusted to use the funds diligently, and provide spending data to Metro Government and OSHN (Office for Safe and Healthy Neighborhoods).
"It's a good program and we're hoping it will work," said Kramer.
Both councilmembers are hoping the $4 million expansion deal will make Louisville safer for years to come and beyond.
"We have to respond to that level of violence in our community and expect the police to fix that is unreasonable," said Kramer.
Related Stories:
Copyright 2021 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
