‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of punishment’

Mr. Beilenson divided criminals into three groups, including those with mental illness and/or substance use disorders, “young scofflaws” and violent adult criminals, and presented several approaches to dealing with criminals, all with merit, (“A three-point plan to address Baltimore’s crime problem,” April 20. What was not mentioned was prevention.

The reference to Operation Safe Streets hearkens back to the O’Malley era. What was even more effective, and started under former Mayor Kurt Schmoke, was the Police Athletic League (PAL) program. In 1997 there were 27 PAL Centers — three in each district — enthusiastically manned by motivated police officers who understood that building relationships with the younger citizens of Baltimore could reduce the number of future “young scofflaws” and simultaneously reduce antagonism between the police and the community. Nostalgia for effective programs need look no further than bringing back the very successful Police Athletic League program.

My wife, Dr. Willa Brooks, was the first PAL Program Director in charge of training the eager cadre of volunteer police officers, working very closely with Police Commissioner Thomas Frazier, brought in specifically from San Jose by Mayor Schmoke to introduce the PAL program to Baltimore. It would not surprise me if the current police recruiting and retention problems could be ameliorated if police officers and potential police recruits knew that, as PAL officers, they could make a real difference to young Baltimoreans, hoping to never see them enter the criminal justice system in the first place, and help improve the fractured community relations and massive distrust the current officers must endure. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of punishment.