YPSILANTI, Mich. (WXYZ) — Alongside a brick wall in downtown Ypsilanti is a place of healing: a rose and a list of names each of someone killed in Washtenaw County, not including the 14 already killed this year.
“There’ve been too many," Lois Allen-Richardson said. "Even one would be too many."
Allen-Richardson was born and raised in Ypsilanti and is the city's former mayor. She also founded the Washtenaw Community Violence Intervention Team and is a proponent of community policing.
“I have seen what community policing can do, and because the last number of years supposedly because of the number of officers, it just kind of dissipated,” Allen- Richardson said.
This year, there is a new police chief in the city of Ypsilanti. He says staffing is seriously low, with just one investigator covering capital cases.
“That is not a sustainable scenario for any jurisdiction," Ypsilanti Police Department Chief Kirk Moore said. "So recognizing that as the new chief, we had to take affirmative steps to correct that.”
Moore says low interest in the profession and retirements have led to a handful of open positions. For the time being, the chief is calling on the county to help.
“When people need help, they call the police," Washtenaw County Sheriff Jerry Clayton said. "In Washtenaw County, when police need help, they call the sheriff’s office.”
Clayton says the sheriff’s office will now investigate all serious and major crimes in the city, like homicide and attempted murder, so the department can focus on patrols.
“We acknowledge the fact that it’s going to be additional work, but there's no option,” Clayton said.
Moore said, “The intent is for it to be short term. We want to maintain our jurisdictional responsibility and accountability.”
It’s set to last four months starting on Monday. As for the civilians fighting violence like Allen-Richardson, she says the temporary fix is a good thing but hopes for a long term solution, so officers can build more trust in the community.
“Community policing is a mindset, but not only a mindset, it’s a heartset,” Allen-Richardson said.
You can learn more about job openings in Ypsilanti on the city's website.
