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Ballard: New Proposal Doesn't Address Real Crime Issue

Last updated on Tuesday, July 15, 2014

(UNDATED) - Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard says a new proposal which would give IMPD officers incentives to move into high-crime neighborhoods won’t address the issue of crime in the city.

City-County Council Democrats are proposing to repair abandoned houses in high-crime neighborhoods which, in turn, could be occupied by IMPD officers who would have the option of buying the homes at market rate after living there rent-free for two years. The money for the project would come from Ballard's RebuildIndy program.

Ballard says officers moving into those high-crime neighborhoods isn't the issue. He says the real issue is having young teenagers dropping out of school and manifesting themselves into a life of crime. Ballard says on the back end of that, another issue is within the criminal justice system where violent criminals aren't kept behind bars for long periods of time.

Ballard says there is a front-end issue that needs to be addressed when it comes to crime not just in Indianapolis, but across the nation. He says there are a lot of behaviors, incentives, standards and laws that will need to be looked at in order to address the city's crime situation.

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