An Important Message from Sheriff Paul Blackman скачать в хорошем качестве

An Important Message from Sheriff Paul Blackman

One of my goals as your sheriff has been to improve the relationship between the sheriff’s office and the communities that have long been plagued by violent crimes. That is why we established the COPS ADAPT Unit in 2018, a unit whose purpose is to build trust and increase communication in the southside of Avon Park, the Washington Heights area of Sebring and Highway Park in Lake Placid. We call those three areas partner communities, and we have made great progress in the effort to make a difference in those neighborhoods. But it has not been enough. A little over two weeks ago, two 16-year-old boys were shot in Avon Park. The crimes took place within a matter of hours and less than a quarter mile apart. One of those victims will recover. The other did not. Homicides and gun crimes have spiked all across the country, and cities around the nation are reporting their deadliest years on record. Since 2017, the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office has investigated 19 homicides within our partner communities. In all of these cases, both the victims and the suspects have been young, black males. Think about that for a moment: 19 murder victims means at least 19 murder suspects. That means, at the very least, 38 families who will never be the same. And that number does not include the multiple homicides that have been investigated by the Sebring Police Department. Our children are killing each other in the streets. As a law enforcement officer, that makes me angry. As a father, it breaks my heart. Something has to change. The violence has to stop, and in order for that to happen, we have to do better. When I say we, I mean not only the sheriff’s office, but the community as a whole. Over the coming weeks, our deputies will be stepping up their patrols in the places where these crimes have been impacting residents. These patrols will not just be deputies driving through the neighborhood. This operation will be very proactive. We will be targeting those we believe are involved in the drug trade and gang activity that has been the cause of a majority of the violence that has impacted our county. We will work closely with our state and federal partners to get illegal guns – and the people who use them to commit crimes – out of our communities. You can expect to see deputies out on the street, making contact with anyone they suspect may have a gun or drugs. And if they find anyone with drugs or an illegal firearm, those people will go to jail. I am joined today by family members who have lost a loved one to violence. They are here as a demonstration of the commitment our community must make in order to be a safer place for our children. In the coming days, you will be hearing from some of them about what it is like to have a family member’s life stolen by a violent act. I am grateful for their willingness to speak about something so painful. Working together, we can make a difference. We can make our neighborhoods safer. We can make Highlands County a better place for everyone, a place where no parent has to be told that their child has been murdered. As your sheriff, I promise you that I will commit all available resources to ending the violence on our streets. The Highlands County Sheriff’s Office will do whatever it takes to keep our children safe. Thank you.