A coalition is coming together in Benton Harbor to address violent crime, often resulting from illegal gatherings that have been occurring throughout the community in recent months.
The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety, the Benton Township Police Department, city and township elected leaders, and Berrien County officials all gathered Tuesday to announce the new initiative. The message from Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety Director Dan McGinnis was it will take the whole community to prevent violence.
McGinnis told us shootings can often result when young people throw parties in fields, in parks, and in the parking lots of businesses. He says police try to stamp them out.
“They’ll put a flyer out, like a week or two in advance but not put the location,” McGinnis said of illegal block party organizers. “Because they know that we’re going to come and tell them that they can’t have it, which tells us that they know they’re doing it wrong. So, that’s the issue because we’ve seen that these large gatherings always lead to some type of violence, almost 100% of the time. That’s what we have to stop.”
McGinnis said police will work with businesses like convenience stores to ensure they shut off their lights late at night to deter gatherings. Also, he said police are working to have better access to the security cameras maintained by businesses so law enforcement can find out faster when trouble is brewing.
Benton Township Police Chief Greg Abrams told us a particular problem area is along Napier Avenue, in the vicinity of New York Fried Chicken. Due to the late hours kept by the business, he says people congregate all night nearby.
“What they do is they come there, not really to eat,” Abrams said. “You’ll see a handful of people inside the restaurant, and you’ll see a hundred cars outside. And they’re there just to congregate, gather, show off, do their thing, and that’s where the problem comes in. So Kathy Yates, the township supervisor, has made a call to our attorney, and she is actively trying to get them to reduce their store hours to at least 2 a.m.”
While police are working to crack down on those gatherings, McGinnis said the schools, clergy, and non-profits will have to give young people safe things to do. He said the community also needs to speak up when it sees potential trouble.
Benton Harbor Mayor Marcus Muhammad said the collaboration now being seen between Benton Harbor and Benton Township is encouraging. He likened it to the mutual aid agreements local fire departments often have.
“St. Joe Township, Benton Harbor, Benton Township, when it’s a fire, they all come together,” Muhammad said. “It’s remarkable. And that was something that I always wondered, why can’t the municipalities, through the other departments, work together with that kind of model and with that kind of intensity?”
Muhammad added funding will also be needed to prevent violence, which is why he welcomes the Public Safety and Violence Prevention Fund created under state House legislation last year. The fund would allocate $111 million per year to cities and counties exclusively for public safety based on violent crime rate. It passed the Michigan House in November.
State Representative Joey Andrews tells us the Public Safety and Violence Prevention Fund is aimed at addressing the root causes of crime, rather than responding to situations that have already happened. He says money was included in the latest state budget for it, but lawmakers are waiting on the Michigan Senate grant the fund approval before it goes on to the governor.
