- Leon County Sheriff's Office and the Tallahassee Police Department attended the Justice Circle Forum Thursday.
- TPD says gun violence incidents have dropped 33% since it launched a gun safety initiative with the Sheriff's office and the Tallahassee Urban League in 2023.
- Watch the video above to hear from college students and law enforcement about the issue.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT
Coming up with ways to combat gun violence in the community.
I’m Terry Gilliam, your Tallahassee neighborhood reporter.
College students in Tallahassee and local law enforcement came together to ask important questions and talk about solutions.
"I feel like it was very great for the community, not only for myself but also for the police enforcement as well."
Deonna Mckinzie is one of the 30-plus Florida A&M students that came out to the Justice Circle Forum put on by the Tallahassee Urban League.
Law enforcement like the Leon County Sheriff's Office and the Tallahassee Police Department were also in attendance.
"Youth or adult alike, anytime you can bridge the gap between law enforcement and the community; there's only positive change that can come out of it."
Captain Brendan Brunner is with the Leon County Sheriff's Office. He and others were in this Justice Circle to ask and answer important questions on topics like relationships with neighbors and law enforcement and combating gun violence.
"You had some individuals with some hard questions today that were asked, and I think we responded great with answers."
Some of those questions included why does gun violence exist? Why is it so easily accessible to get a gun? And how do neighbors build trust with law officers?
I checked with TPD. They say most guns that are being used in crime in the city are stolen from unlocked cars in Leon County.
TPD also says those incidents have dropped 33% since launching their gun safety initiative with the Sheriff's office and the Tallahassee Urban League in the summer of 2023.
That made college students like Mckinzie comfortable.
"I feel like it was good communication, and they also came up with strategies while they were talking to the community while they voiced their opinions. It was very helpful."
And as for law officers like Captain Brunner, he tells me it's always good to share these spaces with teens and young adults.
Law enforcement tells me building trust with the community is a start to combating gun violence and other crimes in our neighborhood. In Southwest Tallahassee, Terry Gilliam, ABC27.
