Wilmington, DE - "The recent shootings that have occurred across Wilmington continue to impact our communities. One shooting is too many, and there will always be more work to be done. And we have committed to this work as our number one priority.

This is why we have continued to support existing and effective violence reduction efforts already deployed and working in Wilmington. The Group Violence Intervention initiative provides those most likely to be involved in gun violence with options to turn away from crime, and our Partners in Care Co-Responder Program helps provide residents with support to address mental health, substance use, and other health challenges. Our Partners in Care program has already provided support to more than 500 individuals.

We also support new collaborative programs like the Community Public Safety Initiative, which is working to provide needed services to residents in high-crime areas. The City of Wilmington has provided $3.8 million directly to CPSI to support their operations so far and has allocated $1.8 million through December 31, 2026, with American Rescue Plan Act funding. 

All of these programs are built using national best practices and are recognized for the role they play in preventing retaliation, mitigating group and gun violence, and addressing the social determinants of health. 

In just the first few months of this administration, we have been proactive in identifying hotspots across Wilmington, including doing district walk-throughs with council members that have led to criminal arrests. We have also cracked down on illegal enterprises operating in Wilmington's east side and will continue to do more.

This is in part a result of WPD's proven crime reduction strategies - leveraging intelligence to deploy our police officers most effectively. This is combined with community policing and engagement strategies and utilizing technology like the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) to investigate gun crime and identify those responsible for driving firearm violence. These efforts have led to a 47% reduction in shooting incidents this year compared with the same time last year, according to this week's CompStat report. 

We look forward to continuing to make progress by further reducing crime and making our city safer for all of our residents. This is best accomplished by working together with members of City Council and residents across the City of Wilmington."

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