I was trying to figure out what was going on with all those helicopters flying over my house, serenading me by sirens and motorcycles at night.
#maytheheavensfall
Then, this happened...
Then, this happened...
I waved, you know.
US Attorney General Barr checks in on Detroit crime — from a helicopter
U.S. Attorney General William Barr, center, visits Detroit to assess a federal crime initiative that involves 42 federal agents coming to town to help fight escalating gun violence.
The feds have arrived.
"Sir Boo Boo! You cannot stop the heavens from falling, for the Celestial Goddess of the Woodshed has cast her spell many a moons ago." |
The nation's top prosecutor boarded a chopper in a field outside downtown Detroit to assess a new White House initiative dubbed Operation Legend, which, in recent weeks, has brought dozens of federal agents to town to help local police fight an uptick in gun violence. During a 45-minute helicopter ride, Barr saw some of Detroit's progress and blighted neighborhoods from above, though he also saw a little bit of Detroit from inside a sports utility vehicle.
After the helicopter ride, Barr and local officials drove to the JZ Motel on the city's east side and got out and spoke with the owners and workers about how crime has affected their business. Then Barr set out for a tour of the 9th Precinct, a police station surrounded by blight and crime, the same precinct where demonstrators gathered last month to protest the officer-involved shooting death of a man who was a suspect in a quadruple shooting.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr, center, met with Detroit Police officers and workers of the JZ Motel in Detroit Tuesday during a visit here to assess a federal crime initiative in the city. The Feds are sending 42 federal agents to Detroit to help the city fight escalating gun violence.
Barr's visit to Detroit comes amid what has been a bloody summer in Detroit. Homicides are up 25% and shootings are up 51%, with nearly 380 being shot in the last two months alone, including 63 deaths — that's at least one killing a day by gunfire.
"I wouldn't call it an intervention," Barr said of the operation, adding "I think Detroit does need an increase" in law enforcement to help fight the city's escalating gun violence.
"At the end of the day, it's about saving lives," Barr said during an interview from the back of his SUV-limo before he boarded the helicopter.
So far, 32 federal agents have arrived in Detroit. The remaining 10 are due to arrive in the fall.
The federal effort has drawn skepticism from local and state leaders and activists who question the government's motives. Black Lives Matter protesters have expressed concern that the feds may be used against peaceful protests, turning Detroit into another Portland. Others believe President Donald Trump, who announced the initiative last month, is trying to use Detroit's crime problem to win votes in November by portraying himself as the law-and-order leader.
As NAACP President Wendell Anthony has argued: "President Trump is in the midst of his reelection campaign. He cannot have public rallies, visit key cities, hold conventions, or even take pictures in a crowd due to COVID-19."
Anthony views Operation Legend as a "political ploy" by Trump to win votes in November and to "scare suburban and city white folks into voting for him out of fear."
"His poll numbers are tragically low," Anthony has said.
Meanwhile, Detroit Police Chief James Craig, who also rode in the helicopter with Barr, has stressed repeatedly that the crime initiative is about helping Detroit fight escalating violence. He has said he needs and welcomes the help. And the AG came to town, he said, to see how Operation Legend is working.
"He wanted to come see it up close and personal," Craig said. "This is all about crime."
Craig stressed the federal agents are already here.
"Folks are on the ground, but they're still building it up," Craig said of the federal presence.
Detroit is one of several cities that is part of Operation Legend. Federal agents are also being sent to Milwaukee, Chicago and Albuquerque, New Mexico, where escalating violence has been reported.
“Frankly, we have no choice," Trump said about sending in federal agents to these cities. "This rampage of violence shocks the conscience of our nation."
But many local and state leaders are skeptical about Trump's motives.
"I have a lot of concern about what his intentions are," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has said, adding the election is less than three months out. "I’m concerned about his motivations here."
Nessel explained that her skepticism is based on Trump's behavior toward Michigan lawmakers, saying he has disrespected and mocked local and state leaders, including referring to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as "that woman from Michigan."
"He calls our cities war zones. That’s not someone coming in because he’s genuinely concerned about our populous," Nessel said. "He's not trying to help. He's trying to dominate."
Federal officials disagree.
U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider said when he was an assistant prosecutor under President Barack Obama, federal initiatives like Operation Legend took place.
"I was doing the same thing then that we are doing now. It's the same. We are working with state and local partners," said Schneider, who believes federal law enforcement assistance is desperately needed in Detroit.
"We have more resources and tools. Who wouldn't want that? If you live in a dangerous neighborhood, you want to make it safe, and that's what we want to do," said Schneider, who also rode alongside Barr on the helicopter tour.
According to Schneider, Operation Legend is already seeing some progress.
"We have some active investigations going on right now," Schneider said. "We're seeing arrests. We've already taken guns off the streets and assault rifles."
Detroit chief James Deier of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has argued that Detroit can't afford to turn a blind eye to the escalating gun violence.
"Senseless gun violence is taking over the streets of the Detroit," Deier has argued. "Whether we want to admit it or we want to stick our heads in the sand, at the end of the day, statistics do not lie. ... What is happening on the streets of Detroit has to end."
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