Leaders from city and county government, education, philanthropy, social services, and community are launching a new partnership to decrease violence and increase health and opportunity in Jefferson County.
Coming in the wake of a record-setting year for homicides in the City of Birmingham, the Birmingham-Jefferson County Justice Governance Partnership (BJC-JGP) seeks to build a coordinated and sustained effort to understand and address the conditions that give rise to violence and the underlying vulnerabilities of the neighborhoods where violence is concentrated. The partnership grows out of a recognition that law enforcement alone cannot solve the problem and that community members and an array of agencies play a part in the solution.
Birmingham City Councilor LaTonya Tate and Jefferson County Commissioner Sheila Tyson co-chair the BJC-JGP and convened the partnership’s leadership council last week at the Women’s Foundation of Alabama. Other members of the JGP Leadership Council in attendance included Jefferson County Health Officer David Hicks, Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr, Bessemer District Attorney Lynneice Washington, Jefferson County Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates, as well as representatives from the offices of Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin and Sherriff Mark Pettway, and philanthropic leaders.
The effort spans multiple government agencies, non-profit service providers, as well as researchers and care providers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama serves as the partnership’s Local Justice Intermediary, a role that includes coordinating data collection across agencies and collaborating to provide research and analysis that supports the work of the Partnership.
The Justice Governance Partnership is being launched with the support of the Aspen Institute’s Criminal Justice Reform Initiative (CJRI). The Aspen Institute is a nonpartisan educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, DC. Aspen is known for convening thought leaders from across the country to address complex public policy problems. Its Criminal Justice Reform Initiative brings together national experts in criminal justice, education, and budgeting with the aim of helping local communities develop more effective approaches to public safety.
Birmingham is among a handful of communities piloting the Justice Governance Partnerships model. Aspen’s CJRI is also working with Grand Rapids, Michigan, and in rural South Carolina, and North Charleston, S.C.
The formal launch of the JGP follows the release of the Birmingham Crime Commission Report, commissioned by Mayor Woodfin. The commission’s report called for the implementation of evidence-based violence reduction strategies, community engagement and investment, and sustainable governance to implement, monitor, and maintain short-term and long-term solutions.
The Justice Governance Partnership serves as a vehicle for cooperating around implementation and monitoring progress. Partners across the cooperating organizations provide wide-ranging data to produce a Justice Audit, which quantifies conditions and identifies needs. The Audit is regularly updated to track progress.
Meanwhile, the ultimate goal is to devise a Justice Reinvestment Plan, which identifies preventive investments that can improve neighborhood conditions and drive down the need for costly emergency responses. The Audit and Reinvestment Plan are tools that aim to identify actionable solutions to improve economic conditions, address violence, and mitigate other risk factors at the local level, focusing on under-served neighborhoods.
About the Birmingham-Jefferson County Justice Governance Partnership
The Birmingham-Jefferson County Justice Governance Partnership is a coalition dedicated to fostering a transparent, equitable, and effective justice system in Birmingham and Jefferson County. Through collaboration, policy innovation, and community engagement, the BJC-JGP seeks to address systemic challenges and create lasting change for the benefit of all residents. For more information, visit parcalabama.org/bjc-jgp.