Stockton’s rising violent crime problem has the city looking to institute a tough-love plan for its offenders. After given the chance to turn their lives around, the City plans on cracking down.
The plan, called Project Ceasefire, works as a carrot and stick scheme. Teams comprised of representatives from law enforcement, the District and U.S. Attorney’s offices, and community organizations will sit down with defendants. They’d be offered the choice: rehab, counseling, and/or a job. If they choose-none-of-the-above, then the city and county would “drop a house on them.”
The system requires a functional jail facility with the capacity to follow-through on the threats. In order to help increase capacity at the jail, the City’s consultant recommended carefully studying data about how the jail is being used and maximize its efficiency. However, the answer may not be building a bigger jail facility.
A similar program had been used in the 1990s to combat an increase in crime. That program resulted in a 43 percent decrease in gun violence.
Read the full story at the Stockton Record.