CLEVELAND — One day after he released a new initiative to combat crime and improve policing in Cleveland, Mayor Justin Bibb sat down with 3News’ Matt Rascon to talk about the growing violence in the streets and the shrinking police force.
“It’s frustrating and, quite frankly, unacceptable, the level of criminal behavior we’re seeing in our city,” Bibb told Rascon. “I want to make sure that we continue as an administration to bring the full weight of the law and justice to these criminals.”
In recent weeks, crime in the streets has captured more headlines and hurt more people.
Bibb said, “one homicide is one too many for me as mayor.” According to statistics from the Cleveland Division of Police, homicides have jumped by nearly 30% compared to this time last year, while the number of car thefts has nearly doubled.
“I think we we’re all frustrated. We’ve all been frustrated by the level of violence we’ve seen this summer,” he said, speaking of the city’s leaders.
Frustration over the issue of public safety boiled over last week in the wake of the West 6th Street shooting that injured nine people. At the Cleveland City Council meeting that followed days later, councilmembers—including safety committee chair Mike Polensek—called out the mayor and his office for not doing enough to combat crime and for not showing up to their meeting.
“Never seen anything like it in all my years in public office,” Polensek told 3News Neil Fisher on Thursday.
“We’ve given the administration everything they’ve asked for and then some. So the ball is in their court.”
This week, the Bibb administration announced a new initiative called “Raising Investment in Safety for Everyone” or RISE. The plan includes continuing to use technology to combat crime, improving partnerships with state and federal agencies and investing in the city’s dwindling police force.
Polensek said he was not aware of the plan before the mayor’s office sent out a press release on Thursday. After looking it over he said, “There are some encouraging points in here.”
When asked about whether CPD’s lack of officers was impacting crime in the streets, Bibb said it “absolutely impacts our ability to continue to be as proactive as we want to be. But despite the fact that we’re down nearly 20%, we have been innovative and thoughtful in how we cut down on violent crime in our city.”
Bibb said the Department of Public Safety is finalizing a contract with a marketing firm in the coming weeks to help recruit officers. It’s the plan councilmembers have been asking for for months.
“I think one of things critics would ask is, ‘What took so long?’ Why did it take so long to do this?” Rascon asked.
“Well, we wanted to make sure we’re getting the right firm that had the right scope of work to meet the needs of Cleveland. And I’m not going to rush that process because it’s so important that we get it right,” Bibb answered.
“Would you agree though, there should be some urgency with this?” Rascon followed.
“There’s always, there’s always urgency, hence why one of the first things I wanted to tackle was increased pay. We got that done last year,” the mayor responded.
That 11% pay increase was approved last year and will happen over the next three years.
The mayor’s R.I.S.E. initiative also calls for increased police visibility and “promoting aggressive enforcement,” which is something Polensek says has been lacking.
“About time! About freaking time,” Polensek said when asked about “aggressive enforcement.”
“They have to understand that this is a tough time and this is a tough business. And we’ve got to support our men and women in blue. Now, do we want accountability? yes. Do we want transparency? yes. Do we want professional conduct? Yes. But you have to understand what they’re dealing with in the street.”
Bibb said, “public safety to me is very simple. I believe in constitutionally appropriate policing.” He said he believes residents want two things:
- They want the police to show up on time.
- Respect their rights as hardworking, taxpaying citizens of this city and of this country.
“And that’s our mandate as a city,” he said.
“And if cops get out of line, we hold them accountable. But that doesn’t mean our law enforcement officers can’t be proactive, can’t be aggressive because I trust the training.”
Polensek said the council is here to help the mayor. When asked about the current working relationship between the mayor and city council, Bibb said they are united in combating crime in the city.
His office plans to address public safety and policing with Cleveland City Council on August 2.
You can see Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s entire interview with Matt Rascon below.
