If you google Milwaukee and ask, is it a safe city the results may amaze you. This is a little what the results state. If you look at the crime rate, Milwaukee is not a safe place to visit. The violent crime rate is high. The property crime rate is high. It consistently appears on the list of most dangerous cities in the United States and there are countless stories in the media of murder and violence in Milwaukee. This is just a few of the comments they report about the city. To be fair they also report on wonderful things to see while you visit Milwaukee like Summerfest, ethnic festivals, State Fair, and different breweries.
The homicide rate broke a record this past weekend with 191 with seven shootings and two homicides. What can be done if anything to get a handle on our high crime rate? I have some suggestions which I think would be helpful. First MPD needs to reinstate its weekly CompStat meetings. This is a computerization and quantification program used by many police departments. It tracks crimes in various locations throughout the city. District Captains are put on the hot seat and asked what they are doing about various crimes in their area. They are held strictly accountable and must produce solutions to crimes in their areas of responsibility. This helps to keep the whole district alert, and everyone should be on the same page with fighting crime.
Many of the serious crimes appear to be on the northside of the city currently. MPD should form a violent crimes taskforce to target the area with FI and traffic stops. FI stands for field interviews, stopping and questioning people in the area. They would have to be careful with this because of the issue they currently have with illegal stops by officers. You would need close supervision to make sure everything is legal.
I previously talked about the midnight basketball league which would help get young people off the street during prime time. They would target an age group like 18 to 27 which would help. Many people do not believe in neighborhood block watches, but they do work. Signs in everyone window stating if I don’t call police my neighbor will is immensely powerful. Everyone on the block would turn their front porch light on.
Lastly the bail system needs to be modified to keep dangerous people in jail. Out of 117 people charged with homicide this year 25 were out on bond. One out of five suspects for homicides were out on bail. These are just some suggestions so hopefully we can get a handle on our crime situation. Milwaukee is a beautiful city we need to make it safer for all of us plus anyone who would want to visit.
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