Warren declares local state of emergency, seeks more resources to combat gun violence

A day after three people were gunned down and a fourth person died under suspicious circumstances, Mayor Lovely Warren declared a state of emergency in the city of Rochester to combat gun violence.

Despite increased efforts bolstered by state and federal law enforcement officials, gun violence continues to plague the city. On Thursday alone, three people were killed as the city's homicide count rose to a record 71 deaths.

In a joint statement with City Council Vice President Willie Lightfoot, Warren issued the declaration to "ensure additional resources are brought to bear with one clear goal: removing violent offenders from our neighborhoods."

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Warren said she has been consulting with the city law department to determine what emergency powers were available to her. She concluded this latest measure ensures "we are doing all we can to remove these violent criminals from our streets."

In the order, Warren cited “unprecedented levels of gun violence” and said the city has “maximized use of local resources to address and reverse” the gun violence.

Through Nov. 8, there have been 360 people injured in 301 shootings in 2021, the order stated. Gun violence is up 95% this year, according to Warren. The increase mirrors similar trends nationally reported by USA Today using data compiled by the nonprofit Gun Violence Archive and other sources.

Lightfoot said the declaration, made possible by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo's violence state of emergency from July, removes some of the red tape and barriers to obtaining more state resources.

Interim Police Chief David Smith said Friday additional state troopers and Monroe County sheriff's deputies would be added to the U.S. Marshal-led fugitive task force. Smith said police had a list of 30 names, people they've deemed as "repeat violent offenders" and already have cause to arrest, ready to hand over to the task force. The hope is that those people will be arrested in the coming weeks.

"The idea is to hold people accountable for their actions without casting a wide net," Smith said. "This is not a zero-tolerance measure but an expansion of our surgical efforts to identify and arrest known violent offenders in our community."

Asked where this sense of urgency was as violence continues to escalate for much of the past two years, Smith said this initiative is just a continuation of work already being done. Because a "critical mass" of violence has been reached in recent weeks, Smith said the decision was made to ask for more help.

Additional state police personnel

According to Warren's statement, Gov. Kathy Hochul has agreed to provide additional personnel from the New York State Police and also resources to help the city's overburdened Person in Crisis team, a civilian-led mental health-related emergency response unit.

Smith said he didn't yet have the exact number of personnel slated to help Rochester police. He added sheriff's deputies will begin high-visibility patrols in and around Dewey Avenue.

The city will continue to work with federal officials, outlined in July's VIPER task force announcement, to pursue repeat offenders and determine if federal prosecution is possible. That type of prosecution ensures defendants remain jailed and allows local officials to somewhat circumvent recently enacted statewide bail reforms.

Smith said even though there haven't been public updates related to the task force, the work hasn't stopped.

Warren pledged an increase in mental health and violence disruption services such as Pathways to Peace, because "we must actively attack this crisis from all angles."

She also asked for residents to remain vigilant and call 911 if they witness or know something.

The Rochester Locust Club, the union representing uniformed police officers. said there is too much debate about solutions and not enough action. "All conversations have done is to decrease the numbers of police officers, and to finance programs that have yet to even start," the union said in a statement.

The first step is simple, the union concluded, "...thank the first police officer, fireman or EMT that you see. Thank them for their service, commitment, and perseverance. And then go to the first elected official that you see and tell them to support those men and woman, to ensure that they have the numbers and resources they need to keep the community safe.”

The Rochester delegation of elected Democratic state leaders — Assembly members Sarah Clark, Harry Bronson, Demond Meeks and Jennifer Lunsford, and Senators Jeremy Cooney and Samra Brouk — expressed support for the latest measures.

The legislators said the root causes of violence must be addressed and said they'll seek to deliver funding for community violence intervention initiatives "to interrupt behaviors leading to violence before it happens, improving relations between the police and the communities they serve and pushing for greater investments in mental health so that people who need help can readily access it."

County Executive Adam Bello said the county has already increased the resources it provides to the city since the start of the pandemic. "Monroe County’s increased violence reduction initiatives will pay dividends into the future," Bello said in a statement.

Earlier state of emergency challenged in court

Warren, along with Monroe County, issued a similar statement of emergency and a companion curfew in May 2020 after Black Lives Matter protests and unrest rocked the city following the murder of George Floyd. Warren said, in a statement, the curfew was due to "to the potential for widespread breach of the peace, disorderly conduct and rioting imperiling the public safety of individuals and real and personal property.".

A few months later, local activists and civil rights groups sued the city over the curfew, stating that it violated First Amendment rights.

Warren continued to renew the order every week as violence continued to plague the city. She eventually discontinued the order.

RPD interim chief Smith said a curfew wasn't considered this time, because a previous one was ruled unconstitutional.

"Saving a life is the most important thing there is," he said. "However, if you give up freedom in exchange for security, you will find you have neither."

Contact Will Cleveland at wcleveland@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @willcleveland13. Thanks to our subscribers for supporting quality local journalism. If you aren’t a subscriber, please consider a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Warren declares local state of emergency to combat gun violence surge