MINNEAPOLIS — With the warmer temperatures in the Twin Cities, there's a law enforcement initiative working to continue the downward trends concerning crime.
"The results that we are seeing in some cases is even better than we've seen pre-pandemic," said Mayor Jacob Frey.
Minneapolis police announced the start of Operation Safe Summer 2, a data-driven approach to reducing crime in collaboration with several law enforcement agencies and prosecutors.
"We have been working hard with law enforcement partners not only in Minneapolis, but all around Hennepin County," said Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty. "It's really important we all know that gun violence is an issue."
And looking at recent data, there were 24 homicides in the city compared to 37 at this time last year, with 30% fewer ShotSpotter activations this year.
"We'd like to see a substantial drop in gun violence, not only by deaths or homicides, but by people who are hit," said Moriarty.
Also this year, 492 guns have been recovered, which is an 18% increase from 2022.
Last year, MPD broke a record for gun recoveries with 1,101.
The ultimate goal, they say, is to address staffing shortages within each department while reducing violent crime across the board.
"The biggest issue right now is juvenile crimes. We have juveniles doing adult crimes, and it's happening so often," said Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt. "I believe in prevention, intervention — but we also have to acknowledge once that threshold is crossed there needs to be accountability," she said.
Carjackings are also trending downward this year, compared to 2022.
The initiative will continue until the end of summer.
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