“A Just GR” has four workgroups that spent the summer collecting data from area agencies on crisis management, law enforcement, neighborhood conditions and community assets.
But Chairperson Reverand Parris McMurray says numbers don’t tell the full story.
“We are at the place where we want to present some of the findings and then say to the community, ‘OK now that we have this information, where do we go from here? What information might be missing? Most importantly what shared experiences or life-lived experiences are missing from the numbers?”
McMurray says the group’s review revealed an overreliance on jail space when other options better fit the situation.
“One of the things that we've looked at over time is the number of people that have been placed into jail but then released in less than 24 or 48 hours. Those numbers are quite alarming to us. Just the financial investment of that - could those dollars be re-allocated to properly address what might be happening?”
Another topic of discussion from the data gathered is the prevalence of domestic violence.
“Right across genders and across even relationships. Those could be romantic relationships. Those could be parent, guardian and child relationships.”
Based upon the data and personal experiences, “A Just GR” will develop a set of priorities and actions to address issues in the community.
Details and upcoming meetings can be found on their website.
For a weekly dose of news right to your inbox, sign up for the WGVU newsletter.
