‘We are operating under extreme shortages’: City leader calls meeting to address crime
Jackson City Councilman Aaron Banks is calling a special meeting Wed. to discuss violent crime solutions.
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - A city councilman is calling a special meeting to get answers from Jackson police about staffing and seek solutions to Jackson’s distressing crime problem.
A record-high 137 people were killed in Hinds County streets in 2020, and less than one month into the new year, 11 people have already died.
City Councilman Aaron Banks said he called the meetings so the city can face this goliath.
“In order to effectively fight crime, all options must be on the table as we seek solutions,” he said. “The Jackson Police Department has lost more than 50 sworn officers within one year, and we are currently operating under extreme shortages.”
It’s called a law enforcement ad-hoc committee meeting and leaders will discuss specific goals that Jackson Police Chief Davis has to address crime.
Banks said the Council will also ask for an accurate personnel update in all areas of the department including dispatchers, the number of active officers patrolling per shift and per day, in comparison to active boots on the ground numbers previously given to the Council.
“It is important that the citizens of Jackson know, that Council and leadership will not turn our head away from the senseless crimes acts of violence and other crimes happening in our city,” Banks said.
One of the resolutions on the table includes increasing the penalties for discharging a gun on a public street.
The special meeting begins at 2:45 p.m. live from the city’s Facebook page.
First, the city is passing three federal resolutions and will tackle the topic of crime afterward.
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