Dear Neighbors, 

I hope that you’ll join me and Police Chief Pamela Smith for a Town Hall meeting next Tuesday, November 28 in the evening. She will share her plans for addressing public safety in Ward 1 and across the District, and take questions submitted by the public.

Like many of you, I’m raising a family here in Ward 1, and believe we all deserve to live in a community where we feel safe. All Ward 1 families need to be able to enjoy our public spaces and community amenities without fear. That’s why I have been so concerned about the ongoing violence in the District and in our ward.

I believe in a comprehensive approach to public safety, with 3 areas of focus: prevention, policing, and prosecution. I have voted for a police budget of around half a billion dollars each year I’ve served on the Council, and have also brought millions of dollars for violence prevention to LeDroit Park, Columbia Heights, Park View and across Ward 1.

Most of you know that I've long focused on the root causes of crime and how to prevent it with programs and services that support people who are struggling with mental health and substance use disorder issues and homelessness, and kids and adults at-risk of falling into illegal activities.

Things like the community navigators at Columbia Heights Civic Plaza, safety ambassadors in Adams Morgan, and violence prevention programs across the ward. I increased the funding for all three of those, and other programs in the ward, in this year's city budget. When it comes to the second and third part of my comprehensive approach – policing and prosecution – I also work closely with MPD’s 3^rd District and 4^th District Commanders to advocate for prioritizing police resources to high-crime parts of the Ward and to hear what tools they need from the government to effectively address crime. I have introduced or supported public safety legislation this year that addresses some of the core issues at hand in the District: fixing issues with prosecution, recruiting more police to fill vacancies, expanding community-focused policing, bolstering the Council’s popular camera rebate program, and generally making our public safety agencies work more effectively to deter crime, get guns off the streets, and close more cases.

I asked Police Chief Pamela Smith to speak with Ward 1 residents, because this is an all-hands moment, we all need to be working together on the same page, and I want Ward 1 residents to be able to hear from her directly about her plan to address crime.

MPD struggles to recruit more officers than leave the force every month. Chief Smith also faces the challenge of managing officer workloads throughout the city. It’s also worth mentioning that Chief Smith has inherited the crime lab backlog problem which has had a significant impact on MPD investigations and case closure rates.

What I’ve heard from her so far tells me she will be thoughtful and deliberative. She wants officers out of their cars, walking the block and speaking with residents and businesses. And she is looking at how resources can best be allocated around the District.

I look forward to this opportunity to hear her vision and for residents to ask her questions about her vision and the strategies she will employ to reduce violent crime.

Join us on Tuesday, November 28, from 6:30-8 pm at the D.C. Housing Finance Agency, 815 Florida Ave., NW. (Note the new location.) You can also watch the Town Hall online at the link below. Registration is not required.

You may submit questions for the Chief ahead of time online or during the meeting. If you prefer, you may submit questions by contacting my office: 202-724-8181. We will not be able to take live questions from those watching online.

Click here for information, to submit questions ahead of time, or to watch online.

I hope to see you on the 28th.