Two hundred and two, if you're counting, and I am.
I count the days I've been in office to remind myself that we have more things to do than we have time to do them. Each day represents an opportunity to effect positive change for our city, a chance that shouldn't be wasted.
Our goals for Little Rock's future are ambitious. We will improve infrastructure, amenities and overall livability in every neighborhood. We will improve our business climate to attract new jobs and investment. Underlying these and all our other efforts to improve life in the city is a sincere desire to find new ways to come together, collaborate and cooperate--to unite Little Rock.
One way to do that is to make everyone feel safe, so we're using training, technology and advanced policing techniques to make our community safer. Public safety has been an area of intense focus in these first six months, and I am pleased, but not satisfied, with our efforts.
When Keith Humphrey was sworn in on April 15 as the new chief of the Little Rock Police Department, I was confident we had the right person for the job. He and his leadership team's development of the new LRPD policy on the use of no-knock warrants is just one example of his and the department's dedication to protecting the safety and the rights of both the public and our police officers.
That may seem like difficult middle ground to find sometimes, but when we do find that balance, our city is safer and the trust between the LRPD and the whole community is stronger.
To that end, we've moved forward with a number of additional initiatives designed to improve officer safety and to protect the rights and safety of the public. First, we have applied for a federal grant to outfit Little Rock police officers with body-worn cameras. In addition, we have implemented the practice of releasing "Critical Incident Videos" to increase transparency and accountability. To date, we have released two of these videos, providing all available footage of separate officer-involved shootings from early this year.
We declared July as Public Safety Month and hosted a successful summit with federal, state, and county law enforcement leaders to discuss strengthening the partnerships among agencies at every level of government. The cooperation among LRPD and federal agencies has led to a reduction in violent crime in our city, and we expect safer streets in the years to come.
Also this month, Chief Humphrey and I joined Consul Quilantán-Arenas for a discussion with the Latinx community on law enforcement and public safety issues.
Finally, we will introduce an ordinance to create a Citizens Review Board to build and maintain public trust between the LRPD and the public. This board will have the ability to review certain police investigations once they have been completed, provide an independent process for filing a complaint against the LRPD or its officers, and to make recommendations on LRPD policies and practices.
All levels of city government must be accountable, clear and transparent, and I believe the presence of an independent citizen-led board such as this one will help to reassure the people of Little Rock that the LRPD is meeting that level of accountability. In no way does this board change due process for officers, nor will it impede police investigations.
This intense focus reflects my strong belief that Little Rock cannot reach its potential until we address both our real public safety challenges as well as negative perceptions and myths about our city. I know that we are capable of creating a much safer city, one that is recognized for the friendliness of its people and their incredible hospitality.
We have 1,258 days.
Frank Scott Jr. is mayor of Little Rock.
Editorial on 07/21/2019