Virginia GOP Targets Gang Members, While Democrats Target Legal Gun Owners

By Cam Edwards

Virginia House Majority Leader Todd Gilbert (R-Shenandoah) has introduced legislation that targets the most violent offenders in the state’s most violent gangs, and that’s great news for the communities most affected by gang violence. The bill is relatively simple, especially considering the impact it could have. It would bring two different programs to the state of Virginia, both of which seek to address gang violence at the individual level.

Project Ceasefire incorporates federal, state, and local law enforcement to provide targeted enforcement against the most violent gangs in the community. Project Exit, meanwhile, utilizes existing social services programs to help individuals with an “exit ramp” out of a gang and into a more productive realm of society. Gilbert’s legislation would authorize grants to communities to bring the projects to their cities, as well as create a division in the state’s Department of Criminal Justice Services to administer the grant programs. Additionally, according to Gilbert:

The legislation also creates the Group Violence Intervention Board to oversee the grants, and a Division of Group Violence Intervention under the Department of Criminal Justice Services to administer the grants, serve as a clearinghouse for best practices, and build relationships among the prosecutors, police, …Read the Rest

Source:: Bearing Arms