In hopes of gaining the City Council’s support during its Wednesday, February 15, meeting, the Apopka Community Task Force on Violence presented a document that the group called a community biopsy, urging for a five-pronged approach to solving violence in the area, especially in South Apopka.
First unveiled in December 2016 at a press conference, the task force report calls for the following: improved community safety, improved relationships between law enforcement and community residents, improved environment of the development of employability skills, more available jobs, and improved educational and vocational opportunities.
The Apopka Community Task Force on Violence had about 17 members including local law enforcement officers, area pastors, local students, and other community members.
The group was founded and held workshops on community solutions in early 2016 after several incidents of gun violence occurred in South Apopka. Bethune-Cookman University students, under criminal justice professor Dr. Randy Nelson’s leadership, facilitated the workshops.
Love said the task force’s focus was on looking at the root cause of violence and crime in the community, which is poverty, he said. The task force researched various crime statistics, especially in Apopka and Orange County.
To read the full article, click here.