Summary

This month's King County Council Town Hall meeting will focus on several innovative criminal justice programs taking proactive steps to reduce crime.

Story

This month's King County Council Town Hall meeting will focus on several innovative criminal justice programs taking proactive steps to reduce crime.

The Town Hall will be held on Wednesday, June 17 at the Auburn Riverside High School Theater, 501 Oravetz Road, Auburn. The public is invited to meet with Councilmembers at an informal reception starting at 6:00 p.m. The Town Hall will begin at 6:30 p.m.

"This is an opportunity for residents to participate in a regional dialogue," said Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer, whose district is hosting the Town Hall. "We will learn about proactive public safety initiatives that promote collaboration between police departments in an effort to develop cost effective solutions that will combat criminal activity."

"Public safety is a core government service and this Town Hall will serve to inform citizens about what King County and its regional partners are doing to provide that service," said Council Vice Chair, Bob Ferguson, chair of the Committee of the Whole.

The Council and the public will be briefed by King County Sheriff Sue Rahr, the Prosecuting Attorney's Office, and several regional partners on programs to reduce car theft, residential burglary, and gang activity within King County. Rather than simply responding to individual incidents, these programs target systems of criminal activity.

The Car Theft Initiative (CTI), for example, involves prosecutors and law enforcement agencies from across the region working together to identify and prosecute some of the most prolific car thieves in the state. CTI uses a tactical analysis center based in Redmond to study evidence patterns, distribute information, and win convictions. Between 2005 and 2008, the initiative helped reduce car theft by 53 percent.

Presenters will take questions from the audience and Councilmembers will take public testimony on any issue at the end of the program.

More about Town Halls

Town Halls are part of Councilmembers' initiative to "get out of the courthouse" and into the communities they serve. In 2009, the Council has been in Carnation to hear

from the public on the County's response to the winter weather emergencies; in Renton to discuss the services provided by Public Health; in Shoreline to review the services available for King County veterans; and in Bellevue to learn more about the Mountains to Sound Greenway.

Each Town Hall is a special meeting of the Council's Committee of the Whole, the only standing committee on which all nine members serve. It considers legislation and policy issues of interest to the entire Council.

Learn more about the Council's Town Hall Meetings at

www.kingcounty.gov/townhall
# # #