Table 1 Comparison of Focused Deterrence & Advance Peace

Theory of change

• Change the violent behavior of gangs by implementing a blended strategy of law enforcement, community mobilization, and social services

• End cyclical & retaliatory urban gun violence by investing in the development, health, and healing of highly influential individuals at the center of urban gun violence.

Clients

• Individuals in gangs or street groups

• Highly influential individuals at the center of gun violence, who become fellows in the Peacemaker Fellowship

Goals

• Group (gangs) norm change &/or neighborhood gun crime ‘hot-spots’

• Individual healthy human development

• Individual & community healing from unaddressed traumas that contribute to violence

Deterrence theory

• Increase certainty, swiftness & severity of sanctions associated with gun violence;

• New knowledge & peer pressure will change behaviors

• Everyday engagement, mentoring and love can support traumatized, high risk people to heal and make more healthy decisions.

Engagement

• Street-outreach workers perform conflict mediation;

• Separate mentors help clients navigate social services, education & employment

• One team of street-outreach workers use the Peacemaker Fellowship program to:

 • create an individualized LifeMAP (mgt. Action plan) with, not for, each fellow;

 • deliver daily, one-on-one engagement to implement LifeMAP goals;

 • conduct street conflict mediation;

 • support client social service navigation.

 • teach group life-skills classes.

Police Participation

• Partnership with police, parole and other law enforcement to communicate increased sanctions;

• Increases police presence around groups/neighborhoods

• Separate from & not affiliated with police

Alternatives

• General social services including:

 • Job training/internships

 • education,

 • substance abuse treatment,

 • Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

 • housing assistance, and others.

• Specifically tailored to each individual and formalized in LifeMAP, but often includes many of the same as focused deterrence.

Sustainability

• Programs average 2–4 years, only a few have long-term presence in city/community;

• Rarely institutionalized into local government;

• Short-term grant funding contributes to high staff turnover/burnout.

• Over 12-year presence in Richmond;

• Combines city budget allocation with private funds;

• Institutionalized in Richmond as local gov’t dept. & most staff become city employees;

• Uses private grants to complement city resources.

Impact Evaluation (metrics)

• Change in community & city-wide gun homicide & assaults

• Change in other violent crimes;

• Changes in gang/group violence norms;

• Community norm change;

• Client’s access to employment & education;

• Community & client perceptions of policing.

• Change in community & city-wide gun homicide and assaults;

• Client progress on LifeMap;

• Clients alive, not incarcerated, not injured by firearm,

• Reduced client involvement in firearm conflict;

• Ethnographic accounts of impacts on outreach workers, fellows and community members.