July 26, 2006
 
COMMENTARY: Washington, DC Police Chief Declares Crime Emergency; New Task Force Created
 
By Jim Kouri
Special to HNN
 
With rampant violence plaguing the nation's capital, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced the formation of a task force. A coalition of federal and local law enforcement agencies has formed a new Violent Crime Task Force to address violent crime and robberies in the District of Columbia.
 
Led by the Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI's Washington Field Office and the US Attorney's Office, the task force will investigate pending cases and dedicate increased resources to identify and apprehend persons responsible for robberies and other violent crimes in the District.
 
The Task Force will be staffed by a joint federal and local team composed of supervisory-level representatives from both the MPD and FBI, MPD detectives, FBI agents and prosecutors, intelligence research specialists and criminal investigators from the US Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.
 
The Task Force will be supported by a larger coalition of District and federal law enforcement agencies, including the Metro Transit Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the US Capitol Police, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the US Marshals Service, the US Park Police and the Secret Service.
 
"Throughout the country, the Department of Justice and its federal and local partners have made great strides in combatting violent crime," stated Deputy Attorney General Paul J. McNulty. "Today's announcement demonstrates that commitment here in our Nation's Capital. The District must be a safe place to live, work and visit."
 
"The violent criminals who have created this crime emergency are up against a worthy and determined adversary - a fully-coordinated array of dedicated public servants who care passionately about the safety of the residents and visitors in our city," stated U.S. Attorney Wainstein. "These public servants - ranging from concerned Members of Congress to top District officials to federal agents and police officers on the street - have come together to develop a task force and an operational plan for responding to this emergency. Together, we will work to get these violent criminals off our streets and into jail."
 
The creation of this special task force follows an increase in violent crime in the District and Chief Ramsey's July 11, 2006, declaration of a "crime emergency."
 
Although violent crime in the District is on the decline overall, robberies have increased by 14 percent since last summer (2,047 robberies to date in 2006, as compared to 1,797 robberies this time last year). In addition, the number of juveniles arrested for robbery has increased by 82 percent, and the number arrested for weapons offenses has increased by 27 percent.
 
Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org). He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations. Kouri has appeared as on-air commentator for more than 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc. His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com. Kouri's own website is located at http://jimkouri.U.S.