PORTSMOUTH, Va. — A Portsmouth group is trying to help communities hit hard by crime and take back the streets.
Non-profit organization "Give Back to the Block" is training people to go into targeted neighborhoods right after crime happens to keep conflict from escalating further, build peace and offer mental health services.
The week-long violence reduction training is teaching these individuals how to provide conflict resolution when crime happens.
Something one student and former gang member, Reggie Gatling says is needed.
"I’m from Dales Homes," Gatling said. "I’m a former gang leader. I seen the direction my people were going and it was time for a change."
Darrell Redmond, the founder of Give Back to the Block says its about getting people involved who may have lived a similar life to the people they are helping.
"Utilizing people inside the communities and getting them trained to become an asset to communities that at one point in time they were a liability," Redmond said.
"We’ll be in a lot of these high-crime areas," Redmond said. "We have people in the Dale Homes community. We’re trying to get into the Southside community and we’re heavy inside the London Oaks community. We’ll be in the Aqueduck community in Newport News."
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There have been at least three shootings in London Oaks in the last three months, including one murder.
There have been at least four shootings in Dales Homes in the last three months, with one murder.
Portsmouth Mayor Shannon Glover says the training is needed.
"It’s going to give people that participate in the training the necessary information and tools to deal with different issues they come upon. What we have to do is get back in our communities and give families and young people hope," Glover said.
Another student in the week-long training, Leticia Sessoms, who is also a mental health professional says mental health services will be provided.
"The violence that is happening in our community is taking over and I want to be a part of the fix," Sessoms said.
"Once we get them trained up, we will have the ones that intervene and they’ll be the ones out there dealing with communities with the highest risk of violence," Redmond said. "We’ll have some that are on the prevention measure side that’s doing programs. Then you’ll have an outreach worker out there."
