TRENTON, N.J. – Today, Mayor W. Reed Gusciora called on Trentonians to provide police with any information they have regarding yesterday’s shooting on the 800 block of Stuyvesant Avenue.
“We cannot end violence in our City through statements or inaction; and it cannot be done overnight. These destructive acts rise from the proliferation of guns in urban centers across this country and a lack of will to address the issue on the federal level. Gun violence is occurring with more frequency and we have limited police resources fueled by budget constraints. This is why we need federal, state, and county law enforcement agencies to assist us with daily operations and gang intervention strategies.
More importantly, we must address the lack of faith and hope in our youth and community at large. This means providing recreational opportunities, improving educational outcomes, and creating jobs. And we must have an effective community policing plan that builds trust between City residents and the police. It’s an outdated concept to have a police force isolated from daily neighborhood contact. We need more patrol units to have personal, one-on-one contact with our citizens, and we also need police leadership to be engaged in the streets. That is why I brought on longtime police veteran Carol Russell as Director to lead neighborhood engagement and community policing efforts.
I ask any Trenton residents with information about yesterday’s killing to come forward and share what they know. Residents can call (609) 989-3663 or send an anonymous and confidential text message to 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S). Begin your message with "TPDTIPS" and you can text back and forth with officers without your identity or phone number being known. No one should remain silent while such violence occurs in our streets. We need people on every block in every neighborhood to stand against the violence in order to build a better community.”
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Timothy J. Carroll
tcarroll@trentonnj.org
Office: (609) 989-3047
Cell: (201) 360-1353
