Fitchburg / Leominster / Gardner

Problem
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Proposed Strategy
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Past Progress


Problem


Poor economic conditions, decreased police staffing, and schools struggling to keep high-risk students engaged in learning provide a breeding ground for gang formation and targeted gang recruitment.

Need for expanded out-of-school time; school-based alternative to suspension or expulsion activities; increased surveillance and truancy enforcement; and increased community communication.

Proposed Strategy


Fitchburg/Leominster/Gardner police departments will:
  1. Enhance collaboration and tracking capacity through data analysis, sustain ongoing foot and targeted hotspot patrols, and increase efforts to build strategic relationships with area's minority population to overcome fears/resentments from increased surveillance and enforcement activities.
  2. Increase youth referrals to youth employment, workforce development, and alternative educational programs.
  3. Increase community dialogues through expanding opportunities for diverse populations of tri-city area to provide input into cooperative Shannon CSI efforts.

Past Progress


Used suppression activities to hone through hot spot mapping and truancy enforcement.

Engaged with schools and after-school programs to provide restorative justice training and the application of alternative disciplinary processes.

Reported that gang activity has decreased dramatically in the region, but general youth violence continues to be a problem.

Coordinated community effort in one high-crime location helped reduce crime with no juvenile arrests were made over a 6-month period.

Held a series of youth/police dialogues to improve communication and relationships between youth and police.