A voice in stopping the violence

To say it’s been a difficult two years for Hartford is putting it mildly.

Amid a global pandemic that gripped the city for two years just as it did every community in Connecticut, Hartford has seen a rise in homicides since the start of 2020.

That meant 35 people were slain in 2021, an increase from 2020 when there were 25 homicides in the city. That is a 40 percent increase in homicides from one year to the next. Further, according to information compiled by Lisa Barao, a criminal justice professor at Westfield State University, the city recorded 461 shootings, 63 of them fatal, between Jan. 1, 2019, and Dec. 31, 2021.

Hartford is not alone in facing tragic loss: New Haven had 25 homicides in 2021.

But as Hartford Mayor Luke

Bronin has said, the conversation should not be about numbers. It should be “about people.”

Bronin is right, and numbers never tell the true story of how a homicide rips at the fabric of families, engenders fear in communities, brings trauma to children who hear gunfire and to those who must watch as their relative or a friend’s relative is buried.

But what to do to end this grave public health concern? It’s a question city and police officials and residents all want answered.

Chief of Police Jason Thody said he’s been on the job in Hartford for 26 years and does not know whether the “why” of gun violence has been explored thoroughly enough. As law enforcement seeks to interrupt violence and to react to it, “you kind of have to know what’s driving it,” the chief noted at a town hall event on violence last week.

As has been widely reported, shootings can result from gangs and drug sales and retaliation, and victims often refuse to cooperate with investigators for myriad reasons, including lack of trust in police.

Residents speaking at the town hall event shared frustration and thoughts on what they think drives violence.

Among those were economic conditions in the city, lack of stable and affordable housing, lack of enough community services, and wage pressure that pushes people to turn to crime for the income.

At the same event, Bronin offered what were called “initial recommendations” to address the violence, and those included: more attention on “very high risk” individuals, increasing reentry support for people who have been released from prison and for mental health interventions, and working toward a better solve rate for fatal and nonfatal shootings, as The Courant’s Alex Putterman reported.

Hartford, of course, already has anti-violence efforts in place, such as the Shooting Response Team, service providers, grass roots groups and more.

Bronin says the town hall during which he provided recommendations was intended to help provide a better understanding of the city’s gun violence issues.

But residents are frustrated by lack of progress, and they let the mayor and police chief know that.

Bronin says there will be more events planned to delve into this crucial issue.

That is a good idea. Residents of Hartford deserve to have a voice.

There are lives at stake, and they might be saved if those voices are heard.