As Columbia grapples with several recent shootings, city leaders look to gun violence analysis and street response teams as possible next steps.
D'Markus Thomas-Brown, administrator of the city's Office of Violence Prevention, said he would like to work with the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform on an analysis.
The study would last four to six months and examine fatal and non-fatal shootings from the past two years, Thomas-Brown said.
"The analysis will identify the specific nature of gun violence in Columbia, and the unique characteristics of groups and individuals at higher risk of being involved in gun violence, equipping the city to strategically focus interventions," he said.
The proposed analysis is expected to be brought to the Columbia City Council in the coming weeks, Thomas-Brown said.
In total, the contract with the institute would cost roughly $290,000, paid out over two years. The city set aside $500,000 for the Office of Violence Prevention at its inception, and Thomas-Brown said some of this funding will pay for the analysis.
The Office of Violence Prevention is also planning to establish neighborhood street response teams after results from the gun violence problem analysis come in. Teams would be deployed in neighborhoods 24 to 48 hours after a violent incident takes place.
Response teams would support the community, primarily by improving access to resources, such as transportation to and from after-school programs.
"They're immediately boots on the ground, right there at ground zero to de-escalate and work within situations that are currently happening," Thomas-Brown said.
Thomas-Brown said similar teams exist in many other cities across the country such as Indianapolis, Louisville and St. Louis.
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