Crime

Crime is out of control in Roanoke City 

After watching my son lose a friend and football teammate to criminals who killed in cold blood, I decided it was time to do something more.  Pulling from my 30+ years serving as a first responder who worked closely with Roanoke City Police, I have several immediate and realistic first steps that we can put into place on DAY ONE:

We have technology available that cuts down on response times and saves lives.  I propose installing gunshot detection equipment in troubled zones throughout the city.

We need to set up satellite police stations in all four quadrants of the city.  Again, this will also cut down on wasted time. Police will no longer need to return to our only currently operating police station.

Rebuild the police department starting with proper pay. Police staffing is down 65%. Current changes have proved ineffective. We need to take a deeper look into how our department is structured and create a lateral hiring program with sign-on bonuses.

Revitalize task forces focused on gangs and drugs and create a regional gang task force comprised of all components of law enforcement.