http://www.jsonline.com/watch/?watch=1&date=12/19/2007&id=33314
This will get interesting to see how the new city Police Chief handles things once he gets sworn into office.
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 19, 2007, 3:31 p.m.
By John Diedrich
Researchers seek keys to slow homicides
The vast majority of homicides in Milwaukee this year were committed by people who have been arrested before and one-quarter of them were on probation or parole at the time of the killngs, police officials said today.
As of today, there have been 103 criminal homicides compared to 102 last year at this time, said Mallory O'Brien, a criminal justice professor who heads up the city's Homicide Review Commission.
The commission, which O'Brien says is a first-of-its-kind partnership, marries up police, prosecutors, social agencies, community groups and others to share data on homicides and shootings and look for ways to prevent them.
The commission found that 90% of suspects in this year's homicides had arrest records, she said. Some 77% of homicide victims also had been arrested and one in six was on probation when they were killed.
Sixty percent of homicides were crime-related but there was a 40% drop in the number of killings by strangers this year, she said. Roughly 60% of the victims this year were 17 to 29 years old.
The commission, which is studying homicides and non-fatal shootings in four police districts, has made over 100 recommendations for changes, many which are under way, O'Brien said. The commission is fostering new relationships and cooperation among agencies, O'Brien said.
"It's something that law enforcement can't do by itself. In order to reduce violence, we have to start collaborating," she said.
This will get interesting to see how the new city Police Chief handles things once he gets sworn into office.