Governor Glenn Youngkin met with local officials and community leaders to discuss the recent violent crimes in Petersburg at the Petersburg Library, and has announced the creation of a task force of executive branch and office of the Attorney General officials to better align strategies to reduce violent crime in cities and communities across the Commonwealth.
According to the announcement by Youngkin, the Task Force will recommend executive, administrative, and legislative actions on an ongoing basis to the Governor.
“There is a clear recognition of a violent crime crisis in Virginia and my administration is committed to joining with community leaders, law enforcement, and Virginians around solutions with the Violent Crime task force. We will take a comprehensive look at how we can address the rise in violent crime by providing more law enforcement resources, creating alternative and after-school activities for children, and addressing the fear that results in witnesses failing to show up for a criminal hearing,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin.
Attorney General Miyares, who is also a part of the task force, also released a statement on how excited he and his team were to be involved in this organization.
There’s not a one-size-fits-all approach to combating crime in the Commonwealth. It requires collaboration and communication with law enforcement, local officials, and community leaders.
I'm proud to join @governorva in such an important initiative. https://t.co/BDsiKBF5wf
— Jason Miyares (@JasonMiyaresVA) May 16, 2022
The statement also included that he Task Force will be led by Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Bob Mosier, with additional leadership provided by the Chief Deputy Attorney General Chuck Slemp. Additional participants include leaders from the Governor’s Office, the Attorney General’s Office, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department of Criminal Justice Services, Virginia State Police, and others. To date, state leaders have met with local leaders in Virginia Beach, Newport News, Norfolk, and Petersburg, with additional meetings planned in the coming weeks.