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Committee approves $145,000 consultant contract to launch countywide violence-reduction strategy
Summary
The Finance & Personnel Committee approved a 15-month consultant contract and preliminary $145,000 commitment to create a countywide violence-reduction strategy modeled on a Davenport program; staff said the plan could be funded partially with opioid funds and may lead to a Criminal Analyst position request.
The Rock Island County Finance & Personnel Committee voted Jan. 13 to move forward with a consultant-led violence-reduction strategy and to commit roughly $145,000 to start the work.
States Attorney Dora Villareal said the approach is modeled on a program launched in Davenport that coordinated court partners, probation, municipal police and family-services partners to identify and intervene with repeat violent offenders. “We are here asking for the contract for the Strategy and $145,000 to fund this,” Villareal said.
Sheriff Darren Hart endorsed centralizing the effort at the County to ensure communication across the seven local law-enforcement agencies. Hart said the initiative will provide judges with better information about defendants’ histories and local interventions: “It is time to look at all the pieces together and understand there are some people that need to be incarcerated,” he said.
Committee discussion addressed funding sources and implementation. The States Attorney’s office suggested using some opioid-settlement funds and pursuing federal grants; staff said the consultant’s work could be presented to the County Board at the Committee of the Whole for fuller consideration. Committee members noted the logistical challenge of coordinating seven law-enforcement agencies compared with the single-county model used in Davenport.
The committee approved the motion by voice vote. Staff indicated they anticipate returning to the Board later with a request to create a Criminal Analyst position to support the strategy’s data and coordination needs.
