ROANOKE, Va. – The goal of Operation Ceasefire, led by Attorney General Jason Miyares, is to cut down on violent crime in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
One of the communities taking part is Roanoke, which, as many of you are aware, has a long history of violent acts, including shootings. The Chief of Police for the City of Roanoke, Samuel Roman, is happy about the new money and thinks it will help law enforcement do its job better.
This year’s budget includes a provision of five million dollars for the Ceasefire organization, as stated by the AG. The funds are going to be invested in three distinct enterprises. One of them is the potential appointment of up to six more prosecutors for serious crimes.
“With a specific emphasis on conspiracy cases, enterprise cases, and RICO cases. It would be great to have a prosecutor who can dedicate most of their time to these very long-term, intricate but very impactful and powerful investigations,” said Chief Roman.
RICO prosecutions are frequently used in the fight against organized crime; in these cases, many people are arrested at the same time on charges of conspiring together.
According to Chief Roman, the majority of the violence in Roanoke City is caused by a very small number of individuals.
“And the message here is if you continue to do wrong or if you continue to involve yourself in criminal activity specific emphasis on violent criminal activity. We’re coming after you,” added Chief Roman. “We’re coming after you with everything we have.”
A program to safeguard victims and witnesses will also be able to get off the ground with the assistance of these funds.
“It’s tough for them to come testify, be re-traumatized by what they endured, or either witness,” explained Chief Roman. “So, any support monetarily that can be diverted into physical attributed of support for victims and witnesses. We’re all for that.”
The last step for the Office of the Attorney General is to recruit between two and three people to fill the position of Group Violence Intervention Coordinator. Increasing the scope of some of the existing initiatives run by the department.
“Making sure that we are interjecting ourselves as role models, mentors for the young people as well,” said Chief Roman. “Our prevention work is as important as our prosecution work as well.”
The reduction of gun violence in the city will serve as the operation’s final yardstick for determining its level of success. However, Chief Roman has said that it would take some time.
“A truly measure approach would be to look at it the long term and see if all of the things that we have put in place has led to the reduction in crime,” said Chief Roman.
The full list of partner cities include:
- Norfolk
- Hampton
- Petersburg
- Roanoke
- Newport News
- Portsmouth
- Richmond
- Chesapeake
- Danville
- Martinsville
- Lynchburg
- Emporia
