Seeking ways to prevent Conn. crime epidemic

Crime is notorious for not taking a holiday. It doesn’t take time off during pandemics either. Gov. Ned Lamont announced Monday that $5 million of federal pandemic relief funding will be dedicated to crime prevention and gun violence.

“I think our No. 1 responsibility to you is to keep you safe, keep you healthy and keep you out of harm’s way,” Lamont told his audience at Monday’s announcement.

Lamont might have used the same words any day of the last 16 months in talking about the state’s approach to the pandemic. In recent weeks there has finally been a sense that this first-time-in-a-century peril is ending.

But crime and violence never go away completely. So we welcome Lamont’s willingness to publicly acknowledge “we are not immune” (again, in reference to crime, not the coronavirus) and could see a continued surge.

Some of the funding is expected to be spent on enhancing enforcement of laws governing firearms dealers. The more intriguing investment is in people.

That includes young residents in urban cities who need jobs, as well as people who have served time in prison.

Lamont amplified his thoughts on crime and punishment during a meeting with the Hearst Connecticut Media Editorial Board Wednesday.

He noted that Connecticut’s tough gun laws don’t stop weapons from flowing into the state from the likes of Vermont and Georgia.

But his focus seems to be on identifying troubled youths before they can become career criminals.

“The first time you commit a crime they have to have some consequences,” Lamont said.

“It’s not jail, it’s not incarceration. But we need to have something so the 16-yearold knows we’re paying attention and he sure as hell better not do it again.”

The governor isn’t just trying to draw the attention of the prospective criminal, but to get local elected and police officials as well as legislators to collaborate on a focused search for solutions. That includes staff from nonprofits, who often have relationships with challenged teenagers they are working to guide in the right direction.

“We going to get these folks together and look at what some of the best ideas are,” Lamont suggested. It’s the right place — and the right time — to start. Even the average student of trends would predict a crime wave given the financial challenges associated with the pandemic, though it seemed to come as a surprise in some quarters. There’s a seemingly endless number of drivers in lower Fairfield County whose cars were stolen after they neglected to lock the vehicles.

The Office of Policy and Management identified three hot spots for crime during the pandemic. Car thefts was one of them (so just lock those doors). The other two were violent crime and drug overdoses.

Crime trends may shift again now that the days of social isolation are essentially over. But it’s important for leaders to remain steadfastly committed to intervention efforts. The last thing Connecticut needs in the waning days of COVID-19 is a crime epidemic.

“The first time you commit a crime they have to have some consequences. It’s not jail, it’s not incarceration. But we need to have something so the 16-year-old knows we’re paying attention and he sure as hell better not do it again.”

Gov. Ned Lamont