MACON, Ga. — In the Bibb County commission chambers, Mayor Lester Miller and Macon Violence Prevention (MVP) stakeholders gathered for a victory lap.
On top of touting declining homicide numbers, Miller announced Wednesday morning that the county received the Georgia Municipal Association's Visionary City Award in the large city category for its violence reduction efforts.
"It's a great day in Macon-Bibb County, where you can stand shoulder and shoulder, literally, in city hall with people gathered together behind a common cause," Miller said. "That common cause is improving public safety."
Off of one of the most deadly years in recent memory, Miller emphasized the progress the county has made in reducing violent crime in Bibb County. In 2022, the county saw a total of 70 homicides. But in 2023, that dropped 40% to 42.
"Both numbers are still higher than we deserve in Macon-Bibb County, but it is the largest single decrease that we've had in recent memory," Miller said.
Miller emphasized how public safety has long been an important issue to Bibb County residents, noting that public officials like himself often hear public safety is the most important issue to county voters.
"With that priority in mind, we went to fine people out there with specific needs in their neighborhoods and resources and to meet those needs," Miller said.
It's part of the Macon-Bibb County Violence Prevention Plan, a strategic plan published in 2021 in hopes of addressing the surge in violence seen in Bibb County during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the pandemic, violent crime rates increased in most cities in the U.S. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, the murder rate in the U.S. rose by 30% in 2020.
Bibb County was not immune from that. In fact, the county saw a huge jump in homicides from 26 in 2019 to 51 in 2020, according to data from Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones. That's just over a 96% jump in homicides.
In the time since, homicide numbers continued to climb, peaking at 70 in 2022.
According to the strategic plan, the Macon Violence Prevention program focuses on funding "state-of-the-art technology" and offering ample funding for public safety in the county, including more money for retaining deputies and other public safety officers.
But the second part of the program is community-based intervention. Originally, the county allocated $2.5 million to the Community Foundation of Central Georgia to help support programs like Cure Violence in Pleasant Hill.
These organizations hope to stop violence before it happens, which Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said is very important.
"We can't be everywhere all the time," Davis said. "That is why community partnership — that is why the MVP program — is so essential and is so needed and is so important and viable to what we do in our community."
Other programs work to give young people things to do. For instance, the YouthUp program received $20,000 as part of MVP, which helps fund programs like their "Hoops for Life" basketball program. They hope it keeps teens off the streets during Fall Break.
All told, Miller called the MVP program "your plan."
"This is not a top-down approach," Miller said "As a matter of fact, the strategies and programs — areas of need — were identified by people living in neighborhoods, living all over our county, in every district."
Since first rolling out the program in 2021, the county has written additional checks to continue funding MVP programs. Miller says it is about keeping the momentum of the program going.
"All of this intertwined, we are making significant strides," Miller said. "We must continue to support programs that work, and that includes MVP."
But Miller says that reducing violence takes time.
"We anticipated this being a 10-year process to change the hearts and minds of our young people from picking up guns," Miller said. "But in just two short years, we've seen some great improvement."
Nationally, the Council on Criminal Justice looked at a composite of 32 cities and found that homicide rates dropped 10% in 2023 compared to 2022. But they also found while many cities are approaching pre-pandemic levels, homicide rates still remain high.
Even though the decline in Macon fits into the larger national trend, Miller says it should not undercut the progress they've made.
"Just because it decreased in another town doesn't mean it'll decrease in Macon. If that's the case, why do we even do anything?" Miller said. "If national trends are going to determine what happens in Macon, why do we even do anything? It's simply not true."
While the numbers "are never going to be where we want them to be," Miller said, recent progress offers the first glimpse that their efforts could be bearing fruits.
"We must keep working to get that number lower," Miller said. "We must sustain the efforts to keep it lower. We are talking about people's lives. Families torn apart. Fathers, mothers, sons, daughters and our grandchildren. The numbers tell a story, but they do not tell the story."
Miller says the fight will continue. He says they will continue to shut down "nuisance" stores, hotels and apartments. It's about holding "them accountable," Miller said.
"This is our home, and it's worth fighting for," Miller said.
You can watch the full press conference below.