Community Violence
When violence occurs, it has devastating impacts on those immediately involved, causing harm and loss. It also may have a negative effect on the community where an incident occurred, disrupting a sense of safety.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines community violence (CV) as acts of serious violence that generally takes place in public areas and occurs between unrelated individuals who may or may not know each other. Community Violence (CV) commonly includes assaults, shootings, robberies, and fights in public, which often result in fear, injury, or death.   Â
In late 2022, the City launched the Community Trauma Response Team (CTRT) as a pilot program requested by the community, for the community. This strategy offers a culturally relevant, post-crisis response to incidents that could cause harm or trauma to a collective group of individuals and prevents further violence from occurring. The goal is to promote healing and repair while reducing the likelihood of future violent occurrences. Â
CTRT is a volunteer-based program that provides trauma-informed response to acts of community violence. The team offers social and emotional supports, conflict resolution, tangible resources, and referrals to impacted community members who are involved in violence (such as: homicides, gun violence, violent crimes, and other community violence incidents)Â
Services provided by CTRT:
- 24-hour trauma response with social and emotional support 365 days a year.Â
- Quick response times- Volunteers or staff will respond within 30-60 minutes of notification.Â
- Respond to the scene of a traumatic incident or follow up with individuals after an incident occurred. Â
- Support and referrals designed to offer immediate, compassionate, and practical resources.Â