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A2 January 30, 2020 The Chronicle WSPD lays out plan to fight violent crimes in 2020 BY TEVIN STINSON THE CHRONICLE Following one of the deadliest years on record, local law enforcement is look ing to crack down on violent crime. Dur ing a press conference on Tuesday, Jan. 21, Chief Catrina Thompson with the Winston-Salem Police Department, Sher iff Bobby Kimbrough, District Attorney Jim O’Neil, several elected officials, and representatives from other agencies came together to discuss the plan to fight vio lence in 2020. Violent crimes are defined as crimes in which an offender uses or threatens to use force on a victim. Some of those crimes include murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. In recent years, while the number of robberies has decreased, aggravated assaults have increased by 14%. When looking at the number of ho micides in the city in 2019, there were 31 murders, the most in more than 25 years, up from 26 in 2017 and 2018. According to Chief Thompson, in 2019 the WSPD seized 900 guns and has already seized an additional 19 in 2020. To cut down on the number of vio lent crimes, Thompson discussed several initiatives that the WSPD will continue and others that are new. She mentioned the continuation of NIBIN (National In tegrated Ballistic Information Network), a network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving crimes involving firearms. She also discussed the efforts of the Gang Unit and the newly formed Violent Fire- arm Investigation Team (VFIT), which is comprised of detectives who are specially trained in the area of ballistic evidence examination. The WSPD also plans to deploy a gunfire detection system that uses acous tic sensors to detect, identify, and trian gulate the source of sounds that represent gunfire in a designated area. The system then authenticates the acoustic signal to classify the event as possible gunfire be fore automatically reporting the incident to local law enforcement. After giving a rundown of the 2020 Violence Prevention Plan, Chief Thomp son said, “We cannot do this alone. Vio lent crime is not just a law enforcement problem, it’s not just a criminal justice problem, it is a community problem and it will take our community working to gether to eradicate the violence.” Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough said his vi sion for 2020 is to continue the Saturation Patrol, which is a partnership between the Sheriff’s Office and WSPD, that will enable officers to respond to discharged firearms calls citywide. “We are totally committed to, all the partnerships that you see present in this room because at the end of the day, we’re in this together and crime has no respect of boundaries and we will see that we ad dress it as it occurs,” Kimbrough said. Other agencies, organizations, and individuals who have vowed to join the fight against violent crime in Winston- Salem include the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol To bacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Matthew Martin, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of N.C., and the City of Winston-Salem. To wrap up the press conference, Chief Thompson had some stern words for those committing violent crimes throughout the city. She said, “We will not tolerate violent crime in Winston-Sa lem and Forsyth County, period. “We’re not going to allow you to con tinue to victimize, terrorize, or criminal ize our citizens here, our visitors here, our businesses here. You have heard from our partners, you’ve heard from our city officials, we’re going to use every ounce of resources we have available to go after you and prosecute you to the fullest ex tent. That is our promise, that is our com mitment, that is our vision for 2020.” The press conference can be viewed in its entirety by visiting the City of Win ston-Salem’s YouTube channel. Candidates From page Al “We’ve got a lot things going right now, but I think in the first 100 days of the new term we’re go ing to have a public safety summit to address the is sues,” he said. “We have folks working on it, the Sheriff is working on it, the D.A. is working on it, the U.S. attorney, the alco hol, tobacco, and firearm group is working on it, so we look to bring that together and explore the ideas that can come from the public.” The forum Monday night also gave the pub lic a chance to hear from the candidates running for Forsyth County Clerk of Court, incumbent Renita Thompkins Linville, who was appointed to the posi tion last year by Superior Court Judge Todd Burke after Susan Frye retired, and the challenger, De ¬ nise Hines, who currently serves as the Chief Magis trate Judge here in Forsyth County. The Clerk of Court manages a team of about 100 people who are re sponsible for recording and maintaining thousands of documents, including pleadings, court calendars, subpoenas, injunctions and judgments. Linville began practic ing law in Winston-Salem in 1983. She practiced in the areas of family law and divorce, which includes child support and custody actions, criminal law in cluding traffic offenses, and estate planning and administration. If she wins the primary and general election, Linville said her goal will be to continue to improve and increase auto mation and access through technology for those in her community and also to resolve complaints and help citizens have a better understanding and deeper knowledge of established processes. Before becoming Chief Magistrate, Hines, a 1997 graduate of UNC Law School, worked as a teach er for 15 years at the high school and college levels. Hines says she has made it her duty to serve others, which is why she has only worked in public service. If she wins, Hines says her main objectives will be to improve access to courthouse services, train and develop professional and responsive clerks, and educate our community on services available through the court. The next Candidate Forum will be held on Sat urday, Feb. 1, at the Delta Fine Arts Center. The fo rum is scheduled to begin at noon and will spotlight candidates running for East Ward City Council. Correction In an article published in the Jan. 23 issue of The Chronicle titled ‘Cling to King’s dream,’ Winston-Salem State University was omitted from the list of sponsors for the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Prayer Breakfast. The Chronicle regrets this error and is grateful for the sponsorship of Winston-Salem State University and the other sponsors and supporters who made the 20th annual Prayer Breakfast a success. Zachry Construction Corporation Now Hiring for: Tuesday, February 11th, 2020 9:00 am—6:00 pm 4830 Shattalon Rd. Winston-Salem, NC 27106 . Dozer Operator • Excavator Operators • Loader Operators • Underground Utility Laborers • Pipe Layers Phone: 919-653-1299 www.zachryconstructioncorp.com CONTACTING THE CHRONICLE www.wschronicle.com 1300 E. Fifth St., Winston Salem, N.C. 27101 Main Phone Number: 336-722-8624 Advertising: Ext. 113 Circulation/Subscriptions: Ext. 100 Editor: Ext. 108 To send news items: email news@wschronicle.com To send a Letter to the Editor (350 words or less) or column (550 words or less): email letters@wschronicle.com For advertising: email adv@wschronicle.com For subscriptions: email plewis@wschronicle.com Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/WSChron- icle Follow us on Twitter: WS_Chronicle The Chronicle (USPS 067-910) was established by Ernest H. Pitt and Ndubisi Egemonye in 1974 and is published every Thursday by Chronicle Media Group, LLC, 1300 E. Fifth St., Winston Salem, N.C. 27101. Periodicals postage paid at Winston-Salem, N.C. An nual subscription price is $30.72. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Chronicle, P.O. Box 1636 Winston-Salem, NC 27102-1636
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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