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THE BURRELL ELLIS PUBLIC SAFETY PLATFORM

NO ONE SHOULD HAVE TO LIVE IN FEAR. AS YOUR NEXT CEO, I WILL HAVE NO HIGHER PRIORITY THAN WORKING TO REDUCE CRIME IN DEKALB COUNTY AND TO MAKE OUR COMMUNITIES SAFER.

  1. INCREASING OUR PUBLIC SAFETY FORCE AND RETAINING DEKALB’S OFFICERS
    • I WILL ACHIEVE A “REAL” INCREASE IN OUR POLICE FORCE. TO ACHIEVE A REAL INCREASE IN OUR POLICE FORCE, WE MUST NOT ONLY FILL THE AVAILABLE POSITIONS, BUT WE MUST SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THE ATTRITION RATE. THE RETENTION OF OUR PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS WILL BE MY HIGHEST PRIORITY.
    • I WILL CREATE AND IMPLEMENT A DEKALB PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER RETENTION PROGRAM. FIRST, AS I STATED SEVERAL MONTHS AGO, I WILL CONDUCT A STUDY NEXT YEAR TO ASCERTAIN WHETHER THE PAY RAISES PROVIDED TO PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS THIS YEAR HAS HAD AN EFFECT OF CURBING ATTRITION. MY RETENTION PROGRAM WILL REQUIRE IMPROVEMENTS IN TRAINING, PAY AND BENEFITS. MY RETENTION PROGRAM WILL ALSO AIM TO INCREASE COMMUNITY APPRECIATION OF OFFICERS.
    • AS PART OF MY RETENTION PLAN, I WILL ALSO CREATE A FUND, FROM PRIVATE, CORPORATE AND PHILANTHROPIC SOURCES, TO PROVIDE DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE TO PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS, WITH THE STIPULATION THAT THEY BUY A HOME IN DEKALB COUNTY AND REMAIN EMPLOYED BY DEKALB COUNTY FOR A SPECIFIED PERIOD OF TIME. MY INITIAL TARGET WOULD BE TO RAISE $1.5 MILLION THAT COULD BENEFIT UP TO 200 POLICE OFFICERS WITH A $7,500 DOWN PAYMENT. POLICE OFFICERS IN RECEIPT OF THIS ASSISTANCE WOULD BE REQUIRED TO REMAIN WITH THE DEPARTMENT FOR A MINIMUM OF FIVE YEARS. IF A POLICE OFFICER CHOSE TO LEAVE THE DEPARTMENT PRIOR TO THIS TIME, HE OR SHE WOULD BE REQUIRED TO REPAY THIS MONEY.
  2. BRINGING PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS CLOSER TO THE COMMUNITY
    • DURING MY FIRST TERM, I WILL INCREASE THE NUMBER OF POLICE PRECINCTS IN DEKALB COUNTY AS PART OF MY COMMITMENT TO BRING THE POLICE CLOSER TO THE COMMUNITY.
    • WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE DEKALB COUNTY POLICE CHIEF, I WILL REQUIRE THAT MORE POLICE OFFICERS ARE PATROLLING THE BEAT AND THAT LESS ARE IN ADMINISTRATIVE JOBS. WE NEED AN INCREASE IN THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF POLICE ON THE STREETS AND IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
    • I WILL SUPPORT THE CURRENT INTERACTIVE COMMUNITY POLICING (“ICP”) EFFORTS AND WILL WORK TO ENHANCE COMMUNITY POLICING IN DEKALB. THROUGH DEKALB’S ICP, I WILL INVIGORATE THE NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH PROGRAM. I WILL CHARGE MY NEWLY CREATED OFFICE OF NEIGHBORHOOD ADVOCACY TO WORK CLOSELY WITH PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS AND THE PUBLIC TO ACHIEVE A BETTER AND MORE CONSISTENT FLOW OF INFORMATION BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND THE POLICE.
  3. ADOPTING COMPREHENSIVE MEASURES TO REDUCE CRIME
    • I WILL EMBRACE THE “BROKEN WINDOWS” APPROACH TO LAW ENFORCEMENT. IN PARTICULAR, I WILL FOCUS ON CLEANING UP DILAPIDATED PROPERTIES AND DRUG INFESTED PROPERTIES. HOLDING THESE PROPERTIES OWNERS ACCOUNTABLE WILL CREATE A BETTER ENVIRONMENT IN AFFECTED NEIGHBORHOODS, AND WILL CONTRIBUTE DIRECTLY TO AN INCREASE IN PUBLIC SAFETY.
    • I WILL FORGE A CLOSER RELATIONSHIP WITH DEKALB COUNTY SCHOOLS SO THAT WE CAN WORK TOGETHER TO ADDRESS TRUANCY AND YOUTH CRIMES. UPON BEING ELECTED CEO, I WILL RESUME NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE DEKALB COUNTY SCHOOLS TO COMPLETE THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING TO STRENGTHEN THE COUNTY’S AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS BY THE SCHOOL SYSTEM AND COUNTY WORKING COLLABORATIVELY.
    • I WILL INCREASE FUNDING TO THE COUNTY’S DRUG COURT AND RELATED DRUG REHABILITATION PROGRAMS. THE MORE SUCCESS WE EXPERIENCE IN REHABILITATING DRUG USERS, THE MORE WE WILL BE ABLE TO LOWER THE EXISTING CRIME RATE.
    • I HAVE BEEN A STEADFAST ADVOCATE FOR FUNDING PROGRAMS COMBATTING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND THE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN. AS CEO, I WILL INCREASE FUNDING FOR SUCH PROGRAMS. IN ADDITION, I WILL BE AN ACTIVE PARTNER WITH ADVOCATES WHO COMBAT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND THE EXPLOITATION OF OUR CHILDREN TO ENHANCE EXISTING PROGRAMS AND TO INITIATE NEW PROGRAMS DESIGNED TO HEIGHTEN AWARENESS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND CHILD EXPLOITATION, TO ENCOURAGE BATTERERS TO SEEK TREATMENT AND COUNSELING, AND TO PUNISH THOSE WHO ABUSE WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN OUR COUNTY.
  4. UTILIZING TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNITY RESOURCES
    • I WILL BE A CEO WHO WILL ACTIVELY EXPLORE NEW TECHNOLOGIES THAT CAN MAKE OUR POLICE FORCE MORE EFFECTIVE IN FIGHTING CRIME. I WILL CREATE WITHIN COUNTY GOVERNMENT A TECHNOLOGY REVIEW COMMITTEE THAT WILL BE CHARGED WITH EXPLORING, EVALUATING AND RECOMMENDING TECHNOLOGICAL INITIATIVES THAT WILL ENABLE OUR COUNTY TO FIGHT CRIME MORE EFFECTIVELY.
    • ONE INITIATIVE THAT I HAVE EMBRACED IS NEW TECHNOLOGY THAT WILL ALLOW POLICE OFFICERS ON THE SCENE OF A CRIME TO PROCESS A GUN FOR THE EXTRACTION OF DNA IN ORDER FOR GREATER IDENTIFICATION AND MORE EFFECTIVE PROSECUTION OF GUN CRIMINALS.
    • I WILL CREATE THE DEKALB’S CEO HIGHER EDUCATION ADVISORY COUNCIL, WHICH WILL CONSIST OF REPRESENTATIVES OF ALL OF THE INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN DEKALB COUNTY SUCH AS EMORY UNIVERSITY, AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE, OGLETHORPE UNIVERSITY AND GEORGIA PERIMETER, DEKALB TECH. AS PRESIDING OFFICE OF THE DEKALB COMMISSION, I INITIATED RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE PRESIDENTS OF THESE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES. I WILL CHARGE THIS COUNCIL WITH RESEARCHING, INVESTIGATING AND PROPOSING INITIATIVES THROUGHOUT ALL PHASES OF GOVERNMENT, INCLUDING PUBLIC SAFETY.

I BELIEVE THAT THOUGHTFUL MANAGEMENT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT RESOURCES IN DEKALB WILL BRING RESULTS AND MAKE OUR COMMUNITIES SAFER.