Public Safety

Immediate, actionable tactics to reduce violence and improve public safety and quality-of-life.

 NOPD Recruiting & Retention

Stabilize and grow NOPD by improving recruiting outcomes, while reducing attrition.

  • Ensure competitive pay
  • Fund retention bonuses
  • Hire permanent NOPD Chief – Ensure national search process is transparent, includes stakeholder input, community search committee, and yields highest-quality candidates
  • Redouble efforts on recruitment and retention to reverse loss of officers. Set goal of 150 annual new hires, with attrition reduced to 10%
  • Address attrition issues: equipment, facilities, morale (PIB), culture, plus other feedback from survey
  • Streamline and improve recruiting and HR processes, especially time from application to test-taking; fix bottlenecks in the recruiting pipeline
  • As needed, secure additional funding for recruiting
  • Deploy additional tactics
    • Fix lateral transfers
    • Offer non-cash benefits (e.g., housing)
    • Improve NOPD external communications to improve image of department
  • Implement regular public reporting and success metrics for recruiting and retention

Technology

Facing prolonged manpower shortages, use proven, constitutional technology as a force multiplier.

  • Fix the technology ordinance; consider further revisions as needed, in consult with DA
  • Electronic monitoring should be scaled to all adult and juvenile released pre-trial defendants who pose a significant public safety threat (per severity of the offense or criminal history)
  • Secure and implement additional proven technology tools:  crime cameras and license plate readers
  • Hire Senior Technical leadership to NOPD (i.e., CTO), JC, CDC
  • Expedite crime lab completion
  • Ensure coordination across criminal justice entities; secure project manager and begin implementation of $30M project
  • Explore DOJ and other grants for constitutional technology

Accountability for the Entire Criminal Justice System

Approach criminal justice as a system that must work in coordination for fairness, efficiency, and effectiveness.

  • Support effectiveness at the DA office
    • Implement “Specialized Unit of Prosecutors,” that Council has agreed to fundFocus on staffing levels, efficiency, training + consistency
    • Ensure transparency on DA activity (e.g., plea/down charge/adjudication results)
  • Achieve more visibility on court activity (CDC and Juvenile); consider Courtwatch help
  • Ensure technology coordination across criminal justice entities; implement $30M program
  • Fix/staff juvenile detention and rehabilitation facilities
  • No “revolving door” where same individuals are re-arrested
  • Make public data + dashboards
    • Add attrition data
    • Add reasons for attrition
    • Track impact of “retention” bonuses in terms of attrition
    • Track progress on implementation of policies
  • Support efforts to comply with Federal Consent Decree, in order to continue to improve NOPD, while moving towards release from Decree

Violence Prevention

Implement policies and programs that curtail violence before it happens. 

  • Implement Violence Prevention Alliance, in partnership with City
    • Fund & scale most effective programsFund neighborhood counseling and services
    • Scale interventions, de-escalations, for high-risk adults and youths
  • Ensure cooperation, efficiency, and non-duplication amongst services
  • Focus on violent offenders involved in gangs; collaborate with federal agencies
  • Ensure effectiveness of NORD (e.g., opening pools in summer)
  • Support implementation of humane and effective homelessness policy

Victim Advocacy

Ensure support for victims of violent crime, to help healing and stop the cycle of violence.

  • Ensure support for victims of violent crime to receive timely information and service
  • Ensure victims have timely and accurate access to all court information and proceedings
  • Support smart victim advocacy legislation
  • Elevate the voices of victims and their families
  • Partner with organizations victim advocacy like Crimestoppers and SilenceIsViolence

Maximize Resources

Significant and sustained business and philanthropic investment in proven community-based youth service organizations, to help them grow their impact and drive generational change.

  • Expand programs like On Scene Services
  • Use civilians for non-emergency responsibilities
  • Secure help from DSP/LSP on interstates (Operation Golden Eagle)
  • Promote use of tools for civilians (e.g. “211 Express”)

Next Steps

Monitoring, assessment and accountability for these strategies will be supported by public reports every 60 days, public-facing dashboards reporting on performance of the criminal justice system, and continued efforts from the Coalition to support solutions for a better New Orleans.