Local, state, and federal law enforcement officials announced a re-launch of the Indianapolis Violence Reduction Partnersship (IVRP) on May 15. The partnership, beginning with the first meetings with the Executive Law Enforcement group in IVRP, will be focused on creating new initiatives to combat crime on city streets.
Mayor Joe Hogsett noted that the administration and police were becoming increasingly concerned about young people with weapons. “We’re seeing an increasing number of young victims and young perpertrators,” he noted. “It is alarming.” He also stated that, as of May 15, there were 35 homicides in Indianapolis for the year, and 164 non-fatal shootings — numbers that are likely to climb during the summer months, when violent crime increases. The Mayor explained that part of the reason the IVRP is being resurrected is that 2015 and 2016 were record-breaking years for murder in the city — a record they do not want to break this year.
In 1998, the city formed the IVRP to combat a increased crime. The initiatives at the time were focused on putting a cap on murder and aggravated assaults by sharing information among many agencies and putting measures in place to deter crime. Chief among the findings in the final report of the IVRP in 2004 was that crime prevention efforts were successful, with monthly homicides declining over 40 percent and noteable decreases in other crimes as well.
Chief of Police Bryan Roach stated that the IVRP is focused on increasing communication between law enforcement agencies and cooperation between departments. The first stage of the re-launch is the development of an Executive Leadership group, with a community involvement group in the works that will include non-profit organizations, faith-based initiatives, and more. “We need a collective effort, communicate among ourselves about investigations,” Chief Roach noted.