Crime really doesn’t pay in San Francisco.
The city’s Dream Keeper Fellowship pilot program is launching in October, and will initially pay 10 participants at-risk for violence $300 per month to act as public safety ambassadors.
If they meet certain milestones, they'll be eligible for as much as $500 a month, according to reporting by KGO.
"As a part of their participation they are expected to do some conversations around public safety, to do some goal setting for themselves, to also think about how they can influence and impact their communities to be better," said Sheryl Davis, the Executive Director of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission.
Funds will come from a combination of tax payer dollars, private donations and possibly a federal grant.
The program was inspired by the Office of Neighborhood Safety, a former Richmond program developed by DeVone Boggan.
According to David Muhammad, executive director of the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, the Richmond program was massively successful.
"There was a 70% reduction in shootings and homicides in Richmond," said Muhammad.
But the initiative wasn’t without complications. One member was arrested and later sentenced to 40 years to life for shooting and killing someone.
"There's definitely something that we want to learn from that program that we want to benefit from and there are things that we don't want to repeat," said Davis.
The program will eventually expand to as many as 30 participants.
Related
