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The Indianapolis City-County Council voted Monday night to approve over $3 million for violence prevention investments.
According to a city news release, the fiscal ordinance includes more than $1.5 million towards improving the efficiency of IMPD’s response to potential violent crime through investments in technology and data analysis. With the help of the Information Services Agency (ISA), situational awareness software will bring together information that is currently siloed, allowing IMPD to map priority locations at a micro level, down to specific blocks or properties.
Once identified, this will allow IMPD and partners to focus resources, social services, and community engagement in those areas. The proposal also includes funding for enhanced data analysis software, storage, and personnel.
The city also worked with the Center for Policing Equity to track national statistics on police behavior and developed a checklist of data to collect and evaluate racial equity within IMPD. An officer intervention system included in the package provides an early warning when officers deviate from departmental standards.
“This is a critical step for IMPD as the department looks to continue streamlining information and resources,” said IMPD Police Chief Randal Taylor. “These investments will also ensure IMPD has the most up-to-date data to use in our response and for analysis. IMPD remains committed to combatting crime and gun violence by using strategic and comprehensive solutions.”
The package also contains nearly $1.8 million in non-law enforcement public safety investments, including the hiring of domestic partner violence prevention advocates who will work directly with victims. Funding will also go towards building out community organizations working to provide juvenile mental health and trauma resources.
The city says Proposal 182 was based on engagement with community-based organizations, residents, councilmembers, and the nationally renowned New York University Criminal Justice Lab, which called for updated, data-driven strategies on how to schedule, inform, and deploy officers and establish better relationships between IMPD and the community.
“Over the last five years, the city has been squarely focused on data-based solutions to violence and programming that addresses the long-term, root causes of crime,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett. “As cities across the country also see alarming increases in gun violence, we must continue to seek innovative, localized solutions to tackling this multilayered issue. This set of investments is vital to continue moving those efforts forward.”
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