DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF)- Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson launches a task force aimed at reducing crime in the city.
Johnson said the task force will take a community-holistic approach by collecting data in areas most affected by crime.
“Collect and analyze all of the available data, engage with key stakeholders as well as the Dallas Community and then come up with specific recommendations for city leaders to implement,” said Johnson. Johnson said he’s hopeful to have these ideas by the end of this year.
Dallas Police report there have been 132 murders in Dallas this year. Last week, there were seven murders in the city, including the shooting death of 9-year-old Brandoniya Bennett. Bennett was gunned down in her South Dallas apartment while watching TV.
“We owe it to Brandoniya to do anything we can to prevent violence in our city,” said Johnson. “We owe it to her family, to police and to ourselves,” he said
Johnson said he believes in the Dallas Police Department and it’s focus on guns, gangs and drugs to reduce crime in the city but this task force will take an approach without relying on police. “We can’t ask or expect law enforcement to do it all,” Johnson said. “Police have to be social workers. They have to deal with mental health and drug addiction and cycles of abuse. And we’ve asked law enforcement to do all of these things in an environment where illegal guns are far too easy for criminals to obtain,” he said.
The mayor has selected three co-chairs to lead the task force: Alan Cohen, president & CEO of the Child Poverty Action Lab, Pastor Michael Bowie, senior pastor at St. Luke Community United Methodist Church and Rene Martinez, a longtime educator and community activist. Johnson said he will announce the rest of the members soon.
