(Originally published in NewsMax.)
A major liberal city seems to have gotten wise to what it takes to reduce crime, and that is to not follow liberal policies.
Detroit has cut its murder rate to a 6-year-low. As of the end of November, the city had 228 homicides, which is 18% less than the same period last year. If the trend continues it will finish the year with a number that hasn’t been so low since 1966.
“In 2018, Detroit recorded 261 homicides, the city’s fewest since 1966, a year prior to the Detroit riot in 1967,” the Detroit Free Press reported.
That is great news that media should be trumpeting. Mayors from cities like San Francisco, Chicago, and Seattle should be on the phone with Mike Duggan asking for his secret.
So what is the city’s secret?
According to the Detroit Free Press, city officials targeted these areas:
- Reduce felony gun case backlogs in the courts.
- Increase staffing for the prosecutor’s office, sheriff’s office, and police department.
- Increase coordination between the county prosecutor and police on shooting and homicide cases.
- Increase accountability for defendants released on tether to the sheriff’s office.
- Increase accountability from the Michigan Department of Corrections for people on probation and parole
- Implement the FAST unit, a joint fugitive apprehension unit between the Detroit Police Department and Way County Sheriff’s Office.
There it is: a working plan to reduce crime. The FAST unit alone apprehended nearly 1,000 people this year who had outstanding felony warrants. The backlog of felony gun cases went from nearly 4,000 in January of 2022 to 1,330 in November, a 67% reduction from 2022, according to the report.
So why aren’t other cities following in Detroit’s footsteps?
Because those steps go against liberal ideology. They arrest, prosecute and imprison criminals. They fund law enforcement so they have enough people to do their jobs. And they are effective.
“The commitment and dedication of all of the stakeholders involved in these efforts have resulted in positive and significant progress,” 36th District Court Chief Judge William McConico told the Free Press. “Our community has and will continue to benefit by the work that has been done, and I am eager to see how we build upon these impressive outcomes.”
This is what being committed to an outcome and following policies that work can yield.
While this is something Detroit can be proud of, officials realize there is still work to be done. The citywide reduction is impressive, but their efforts also revealed that some precincts are still struggling with crime. The 2nd, 4th and 5th precincts are still seeing crime increases.
The beauty of having a plan that works is now authorities can shift some of the resources from places where crime is relatively under control and focus more on the three troublesome precincts with even more resources.
Isn’t it amazing how effective law enforcement can be if you actually enforce the laws?
Now, if only other cities would actually pay attention to what is working in the Motor City and try the same approach in their cities.
Michael Letts is the Founder and CEO of In-Vest USA, a national grassroots nonprofit organization helping to re-fund police by contributing thousands of bulletproof vests for police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs. He also has over 30 years of law enforcement experience. Read More Michael Letts reports — Here.
