Two of Georgia’s top lawmakers announced Monday ways they plan to fight violent crime — especially in the city of Atlanta. Speaking to members of the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee, Gov. Brian Kemp said he plans to ask the General Assembly to pass laws to fight crime during a special legislative session this fall.
And House Speaker David Ralston (R-Blue Ridge) told the committee he plans to ask the General Assembly to approve spending $3 million to pay for 20 additional state troopers and to double the state’s gang and human trafficking task forces.
Many of the committee members expressed their support of these announcements.
“Of course, our No. 1 issue to focus on during the special session will be the redistricting,” Rep. Micah Gravley (R-Douglasville) told InsiderAdvantage Monday. “But because of the high level of violent crimes taking place in Atlanta — it definitely warrants being a topic to be discussed while we have the opportunity.
“Crime in Atlanta has become a real problem — citizens are voicing concerns and those concerns must be addressed,” Gravley added. “But it’s more than an Atlanta problem — it’s a problem for those counties and cities that border Fulton County, as well. And that includes portions of my district. It could put a strain on Douglasville Police Chief (Gary) Sparks and Douglas County Sheriff Tim Pounds. This high level of crime could put a strain on these law enforcement agencies with crime coming across county lines.”
Kemp made his announcement during the committee’s second meeting. “It is my intention to include the work of this committee and solutions from other concerned stakeholders in my call for a special session of the General Assembly this fall,” Kemp said.
Crime has spiked in Atlanta, and state officials are grappling with ways to bring it under control. According to testimony, this year, as of June, homicides have increased in Atlanta by more than 50 percent and shootings had increased by 40 percent compared to the same time period in 2020.
“We heard some very sobering statistics in this meeting,” said Representative J. Collins (R-Villa Rica), who is chairing the committee. “So I think everything is on the table at this point.”
That includes, according to Collins, Speaker Ralston’s proposal to spending $3 million to pay for 20 additional state troopers and to double the state’s gang and human trafficking task forces. Most of those officers would focus on the Atlanta area.
“We cannot allow this spike in violent crime to continue to cast a pall over our capital city,” Ralston said. “I’m of the opinion that we need more state law enforcement officers working in the city of Atlanta.”
Lawmakers heard testimony regarding the work the Georgia State Patrol has been doing in Atlanta to help reduce crime rates in the city.
“It’s amazing to see what the State Patrol has been able to accomplish in Atlanta,” said Collins. “But they also have a shortage of officers, and we are taking them away from their service areas to work in Atlanta. It’s something we have been forced to do because crime has gotten out of hand.
“One year ago, Atlanta was one vote away from defunding the police,” Collins said. “There are always consequences for poor public policy — and a rise in crime is one of those.
“We hear a lot of talk lately about disenfranchising since the passage of Georgia’s new voter integrity law,” said Collins. “In my opinion, violent crime is a type of disenfranchisement. Think about how much crime has prohibited people from voting. We have to do something.”
