The National Network's approach has attracted significant media attention over twenty years. This page features the most recent coverage of our work and a searchable archive of media about the National Network's projects around the nation and abroad.
The National Network convenes regular conferences, working sessions and webinars to discuss and promote developments in its core areas of operation, showcase innovations, and set research and development priorities.
"Ray Winans, once affectionately known as “Killer Ray,” is helping reduce gun violence in Detroit — one gang member at a time. The 37-year-old former gang member is an unconventional activist who mediates among gangs, police and federal prosecutors while encouraging young Black men to end their lives of crime and hand their guns over to officials."
"John Jay College President Jeremy Travis and Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. announced the appointment of Meg Reiss as the first Executive Director of the Institute for Innovation in Prosecution (IIP). Ms.Reiss is a former Brooklyn and Nassau County prosecutor with more than two decades of high-profile experience in the courtroom and in efforts to reform the criminal justice system."
Texas minicipal judge Ed Spillane refuses to send to jail people who are simply unable to muster the financial resources to handle legal troubles. In these instances Judge Spillane opts for less punitive measures as recourse for low level offenses.
The "power to charge and prosecute someone with a crime comes with grave responsibility."A lengthy report documenting the importance of American prosecutors reconsidering their role in the criminal justice system.
"In this searching talk, Adam Foss, a prosecutor with the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office in Boston, makes his case for a reformed justice system that replaces wrath with opportunity, changing people's lives for the better instead of ruining them."
"New York City saw a significant drop in major crimes in the first quarter of 2016 with the fewest murders and shootings in its recorded history, Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) announced during a Monday press conference. "
"As police shootings of unarmed black men draw increasing scrutiny, some law enforcement agencies are trying to train their officers to accept their intrinsic prejudices and work to overcome them. President Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing recommended implicit bias training...as one method of reform. It’s being offered in departments large and small, including in Baltimore, New Orleans, Los Angeles and Seattle."
Project Longevity in Connecticut is proving to be a model for implementation of GVI, with cities around the country taking note. "Violence in New Haven, a city of 130,000 people, soon declined sharply. In 2011, it had 34 homicides. Last year, it had 15, a decrease of 56 percent. In 2011, New Haven police responded to 426 complaints of shots fired. Last year, officers handled 90, a drop of 79 percent."
Project Longevity and the New Haven Police Department have been holding daily intelligence meetings to ensure rapid responses to sometimes fluid dynamics. "The intel meetings, which have been occurring since January, include representatives from a bevy of local, state and federal agencies, all working together in one information sharing session at New Haven police headquarters. Four days a week, roughly 400 years of police experience can be found at that one table."
"A national research center focused on interactions between the police and the communities they serve will open this summer at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, with the college’s first endowed professor as its director. Phillip Atiba Goff established the Center for Policing Equity at the University of California, Los Angeles, a decade ago, and it recently began collaborating with police departments around the country to standardize, track and compare statistics on law enforcement behavior, including stops and use of force." The Center for Policing Equity is a partner and works very closely with the National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice. 
Shiho Fukada for The New York Times
"A local radio station followed around Birmingham Police Officer B. Steward. He has been a walking beat cop since the city implemented the Violence Reduction Initiative (VRI) last year. Steward is a utility officer, meaning he doesn’t have a set beat. He patrols different neighborhoods almost everyday and he likes it. The change gives him opportunities to meet people in neighborhoods all over west Birmingham, he says."
Esther Ciammachilli,WBHM
The Kansas City chapter of "Mothers in Charge" works closely with KC NoVA as a support and outreach partner that works to support families of victims and group members seeking to change their lives.
A profile of the effectiveness and innovation of Brimingham VRI.
"In June, 2015, The Birmingham Police Department introduced the Violent Crime Reduction Initiative." Birmingham Police Chief A.C. Roper spoke about the progress that has been made through the program.
The Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, in conjunction with the PICO National Network produced a document of the nation's most effective strategies to reducing gun violence. The publication named the Group Violence Intervention as one of the premier approaches in the United States.
Becoming a Man (BAM) is a program in Chicago, IL that is designed to help young men get the most out of their lives and flourish in their communities. 
Pete Souza, White House
This piece highlights a new study that details the most effective community practices for reducing violence, and evaluates the effects of focused deterrence.
"In 2011, [High Point PD] decided to reinvigorate its approach [to domestic violence]. Through an array of positive incentives, community engagement and warnings of jail time, it sought to deter first-time abusers from assaulting their partners again and to dissuade chronic offenders from continuing or escalating their pattern of assaults.At the core of High Point’s approach is an intervention known as focused deterrence, a crime reduction strategy developed in Boston in the early 1990s as a way to stop gun violence among gangs."
A bit of insight into what a call-in looks and feels like.
Researchers at Harvard Kennedy School were recently commissioned to evaluate the best evidence on violence reduction and provide recommendations applicable to Latin America. The Kennedy School team determined that “focused deterrence has the largest direct impact on crime and violence, by far, of any intervention in this report."
"The first two months of 2016 represented New Orleans' least murderous start of the past five years...If continued, the pace would leave the city with 90 murders -- its lowest total since 1969."
Three doctors discuss how medical workers and health professionals can combat gun violence. Combining this health and service based approach with a strategy of focused law enforcement can lead to dramatic reductions in rates of gun violence.
"Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis, top criminal justice researchers at the Johns Hopkins University and city leaders on Monday announced a partnership to apply the latest research to everyday policing. Police hope the Baltimore Collaborative for Violence Prevention will have an immediate impact on crime rates. Researchers hope it will "create opportunities to advance the science of violence prevention."
"New Haven’s Project Longevity program has received national attention in recent years, including a mention by President Barack Obama in a speech last year on criminal justice. Now, the anti-gang violence program is on track to enhance its capabilities after a favorable vote from the Board of Alders’ Public Safety Committee Thursday night."
South Bend Police Chief Scott Ruszkowski is seeking to bolster community relations by fostering greater interaction with the people of South Bend.
