Invest in Community Services, Not Police, New Orleans Told

The Vera Institute of Justice has recommended that New Orleans use federal dollars to invest in youth services, community violence intervention programs, and a $40 million dollar mental health “community solutions center” to address a rise in violent crime over the last two years, reports The Lens.

The organization advised the New Orleans City Council’s Criminal Justice Committee to focus on front-end investments rather than spending more money on police and prosecutors.

The 100-bed, mental health “community solutions center” that the Vera Institute is proposing would offer three tiers of service: a round-the-clock walk-in and drop-off center for people experiencing mental health crises; a “crisis stabilization” tier that would provide five to seven-day stays while people are connected to services; and residential care for people with more long-term needs that would allow 30-60 day stays.

The organization also recommended $2 million in proposed violence intervention funding to launch  a “community-led, community-based, violence intervention program,” that would exist outside of city government.

It suggested increasing funding to the Mayor’s Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which identifies and provides services to individuals deemed most at risk of becoming victims or perpetrators of gun violence.

Vera also presented an analysis of publicly initiated NOPD calls showing that the majority of calls were related to things like traffic issues, or quality of life complaints, such as noise, and less than 5 percent were related to violent crimes.

Additional Reading: Why Police Defunding Should Remain on Agenda, The Crime Report, Feb. 23, 2022