The Political Dynamics of Justice Reform in The U.S.
The Political Dynamics of Justice Reform in The U.S.
The Political Dynamics of Justice Reform in The U.S.
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the program, participants are eligible to receive a stipend <strong>of</strong> up to $1,000—undoubtedly<br />
the most contentious aspect <strong>of</strong> the <strong>in</strong>itiative.<br />
Tubbs has also promoted the Office <strong>of</strong> Violence Prevention, which <strong>in</strong>cludes Operation<br />
Ceasefire and Peacekeepers, a mentor<strong>in</strong>g program for at-risk youth.<br />
<strong>The</strong> city’s holistic approach to stamp<strong>in</strong>g out gun violence comes as it is also bolster<strong>in</strong>g<br />
its police department, which now has a record number <strong>of</strong> <strong>of</strong>ficers.<br />
Tubbs envisions a city <strong>in</strong> which the police work is part and parcel <strong>of</strong> a broader crimereduction<br />
strategy.<br />
“For the past 30 years, Stockton has been double or triple the state average<br />
consistently for gun violence and homicides. When I was elected to city council, we had<br />
71 homicides, which was more per capita than Chicago at the time. Unacceptably high<br />
rates <strong>of</strong> violence,” Tubbs says. “We now have more police <strong>of</strong>ficers than we ever had.<br />
But we also have an understand<strong>in</strong>g that cops <strong>in</strong> and <strong>of</strong> itself are necessary but not<br />
sufficient. That the cops don’t do prevention work, they come <strong>in</strong> after a crime has been<br />
committed. But there’s a lot <strong>of</strong> upstream factors and <strong>in</strong>dicators we can use to figure out<br />
who is it that’s go<strong>in</strong>g to drive gun violence <strong>in</strong> our community. And figure out how do we<br />
streaml<strong>in</strong>e our <strong>in</strong>stitutions so they track those signs early so we don’t have to go to<br />
enforcement to create change.”<br />
For Tubbs, his city, and the state itself, the work never ends.<br />
When we spoke with Tubbs <strong>in</strong> late April, the preced<strong>in</strong>g weekend had been especially<br />
violent, with three recorded homicides <strong>in</strong> as many days. Tubbs and his staff were go<strong>in</strong>g<br />
to spend the rest <strong>of</strong> the week strategiz<strong>in</strong>g about how they could improve.<br />
“It’s not a sexy topic,” he expla<strong>in</strong>s. “It’s not one to easily w<strong>in</strong> on. But it’s one I’m<br />
committed to mak<strong>in</strong>g sure that by the time I leave as mayor <strong>of</strong> Stockton, we’re on a<br />
trend towards a steady decl<strong>in</strong>e <strong>in</strong> gun violence.”<br />
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