Leaders of California Cities Convene to Discuss Gang Prevention Initiatives

Attorney General Eric Holder Addresses Federal Policies for Reducing Gang Violence

SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Attorney General Eric Holder will address a group of mayors, police chiefs and other California city leaders during a meeting this afternoon of the California Cities Gang Prevention Network in Sacramento.  The Attorney General will discuss emerging federal policies and intergovernmental partnerships for reducing gang violence in cities.

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Media are invited to cover the Attorney General's remarks at 4:30pm at the Embassy Suites Sacramento – Riverfront Promenade. For more information or to RSVP, please contact Amanda Straub at 202-626-3015 or [email protected].

During the meeting, participants aim to explore the role of state and federal governments in supporting municipalities' gang reduction efforts, including ways to make funding streams more flexible for comprehensive local gang prevention efforts.  Local leaders will also explore how they can help their communities in a limited resources environment and how a balanced and collaborative approach of law enforcement, municipal leaders, school officials and community based organizations can successfully reduce gang violence.

The California Cities Gang Prevention Network seeks to reduce gang-related violence and victimization through cross-city peer learning, identify and implement best practices and initiate state and federal policy changes to support local practice.  Participating network cities include Fresno, Los Angeles, Oakland, Oxnard, Richmond, Sacramento, Salinas, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San José, Santa Rosa and Stockton.  

"This Network really shows the power and potency of what communities can accomplish when they work together to reduce violent crime by blending prevention, intervention and enforcement," said Jack Calhoun, Senior Consultant for the National League of Cities' (NLC) Institute for Youth, Education, and Families.  "As we continue to identify effective strategies and shape the development of local gang prevention plans in each of these cities, the Network needs and advocates for more flexibility in the use of available state and federal funding."

In addition to the Attorney General, participants will have an opportunity to hear from Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and representatives from the California Governor's Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy, the California Department of Corrections and the Prevention Institute.  Sacramento Police Chief Rick Braziel will also be joined by police chiefs from Oxnard and Oakland to discuss gang prevention in their cities.

The Network is sponsored by the National League of Cities' (NLC) Institute for Youth, Education and Families and the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and is supported by grants from the California Wellness Foundation and the California Endowment, with earlier support from the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund, the East Bay Community Foundation and the Richmond Children's Fund.  Kaiser Permanente provided additional support for this meeting.

In existence since 1907, the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, a non-profit research and consulting firm, specializes in child welfare and juvenile and adult justice issues.

The National League of Cities is the nation's oldest and largest organization devoted to strengthening and promoting cities as centers of opportunity, leadership and governance. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities, towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans.  

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SOURCE National League of Cities