U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland met with Indiana law enforcement members Monday during a summit to address violent crime across the country.
Garland gave remarks during the opening ceremony of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Violent Crime Reduction Summit in downtown Indianapolis. In his keynote speech, he pointed to the country’s gun violence epidemic and other issues facing law enforcement such as retaining and hiring enough police officers.
Garland also underlined the heightened risk of what he called “hate-fueled violence” in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war.
Garland said that efforts to curb violent crime are starting to show success. He said between 2021 and 2022, the country saw a 6 percent decline in homicides.
“These developments are encouraging,” Garland said. “But this is not a time to relax our efforts. We have so much more to do.”
Read more: Two Indiana police officers are acquitted of excessive force in 2020 protesters' arrests
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said Indianapolis saw a 16 percent decreasein criminal homicides in 2022, and the city is on track to have a nearly 20 percent decrease this year.
He touted the city’s three-year violence reduction strategy and its “community-based methodology” as a factor behind the reduced numbers.
“Violent crime is not a happy cause. It is one that unites too many communities in this country of ours,” Hogsett said. “But other points of unity are the solutions.”
Garland later met with Indiana law enforcement officials, including Marion County Sheriff Kerry Forestal and Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Assistant Chief Chris Bailey. Garland stressed the importance of partnerships between local law enforcement and the federal government to combat crime.
“In the most difficult moments for our communities, and for our country, strong partnerships between federal, local, law enforcement and the communities we serve are essential to getting us through,” Garland said.
The DOJ also released its Violent Crime Reduction Roadmap on Monday to provide resources to local agencies.
The summit runs through Wednesday.
Contact WFYI criminal justice reporter Katrina Pross at kpross@wfyi.org.
Pross is a Corps Member of Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project.