COLUMBIA, S.C. — The City of Columbia’s Office of Violent Crime Prevention presented it’s first-ever update to the city’s public safety committee on Tuesday. The office was created back in may to stop violent crimes from happening across the Capital City.
“What we can expect from this office is to coordinate all of the city’s violent crime reduction strategies,” Director Trevon Fordham said.
Fordham said the office has taken a three-phase approach to setting up the office. Stage one is about assessing the city, examining people places and behavior by speaking to residents about concerns they have.
“It ranges from going to different communities and different districts in the city," Fordham said. "Some of the things I’m hearing is that, as far as discharging or a lot of gunshots, that they are hearing others say there aren’t enough activities for our young people.”
Stage two is about forming and establishing a goal and purpose of the office. “So, when we’re talking about planning. We’re connecting the dots for our community," Fordham said. "That’s what our office is really going to focus on.”
It also involves data analysis, Fordham said. There was a look at what factors into violent crime risks. According to the presentation, the office looks at weapons carriers, people who were recently victims of crimes, and people between ages 14 and 35, among other factors.
“Our numbers are actually comparable to the national numbers when it comes to the age range of those who are deemed at risk as defined by the CDC and Department of Justice,” Fordham said.
Phase three focuses on planning and making community connections to help connect the city with crime solutions, like outreach programs, Fordham said. The Columbia city leader said this is a big a investment for the city.
“From the business standpoint, Giffords Law Center estimates a fatal gun crime cost everybody about $800,000, that’s the community impact,” Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said.
Fordham said as the office continues to establish itself, it will adjust its data collection strategies. The department says it hopes to launch its website by the end of this week.