Portsmouth task force reports progress on community outreach, seeks consultant and staff support

The Crime and Gun Violence Prevention Task Force updated Portsmouth City Council on its organizing work, neighborhood outreach and next steps, and asked the council for help securing consulting support, routine staff liaisons and better technology access to move its committee work into an actionable citywide plan.

The task force has met since November 2024 and held its first work in earnest after Jalen Jury said he began chairing in December. "I'm Jalen Jury. I'm the chairman of the crime and gun violence prevention task force," Jury told council, and described a structure of four standing committees — community engagement, resource allocation, data and metrics, and intervention — that have been meeting monthly and working between those meetings.

The committee chairs and members told council they have begun neighborhood outreach, compiled program inventories and resource lists, and run a recent “Peace Week” with more than 22 programs. But members and council liaisons said the group needs a project manager or consultant to synthesize committee findings into a comprehensive action plan and to help navigate procurement and implementation.

"The resolution says that the task force is to develop and implement comprehensive action items that collaboratively address the need…