DETROIT (WWJ) – Nearly 400 illegal guns have come off Michigan streets in the last year, thanks to Operation Safe Neighborhoods.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Detroit Police Chief James White and other state and local leaders spoke at DPD headquarters Tuesday to provide an update on the program and discuss further plans to keep neighborhoods safe.
Launched last fall, the operation sees Michigan Department of Corrections parole and probation agents across the state team up with local law enforcement to conduct enhanced compliance checks on probationers and parolees who are legally prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Since the operation began, law enforcement officials have conducted nearly 3,400 check-ins with felony offenders, leading to 389 illegal guns taken out of communities, officials announced Tuesday. During sweeps, officers have also recovered illegal drugs and ammunition.
Officials say there are roughly 32,000 probationers and 8,500 parolees in the state, of which 20% have been convicted previously of a gun crime. The plan the department devised and implemented to supervise them is "aimed at the strategic targeting of high-risk individuals who have weapons possession in their criminal history that could be used to commit further crime," state officials said.
Speaking Tuesday, Whitmer said the plan to keep Michigan safe from gun violence is a team effort across the board.
"We need police officers and local leaders and healthcare professionals and community members all to be a part of this to keep people safe," Whitmer said.
White said another "valuable aspect" of the operation is "getting those illegal weapons out of the hands of those who should not have them in the first place," noting Detroit has seen a number of children get ahold of guns and shoot themselves in recent years.
"There is too much gun violence in our country because there are too many illegal guns on the street. Detroit is not immune to this and it's going to take a coordinated effort at the local, state and federal levels to address this problem," said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan.
Whitmer has proposed hundreds of millions of dollars in funding dedicated to keeping communities safe. Details of the proposed budget can be found on the state's website.
