Detroit is a violent city, but the numbers in 2015 reflected a slight change. More Americans are killed by Americans than by terrorists, yet ISIS is the number one concern in the upcoming election. Is violence in America and Detroit just part of life? Devin sits down with Detroit’s top cop, Chief James Craig to discuss how the city did in 2015 and how the city can do better in the new year. Then Dr. Carmen McIntyre joins the conversation to discuss the mental health crisis in America. Plus, the Free Press’s John Gallagher looks at the most exciting projects on Detroit’s drawing board for 2016 on this week’s Flashpoint.
Detroit had some terrible types of crime in 2015. From Mitchelle Blair’s children discovered in a freezer to two EMTs viciously attacked, or ten people shot at a crowded block party. As 2016 begins, reports will begin surfacing that look at the statistics and the hard numbers.
Chief James Craig said that the murder rate is down across the country, but that it isn’t due to the effort of the police. Craig attributes the lowered murder rate to the medical professionals and advancements in medicine.
Craig said the more accurate statistic to review would be shootings.
“Shootings in my view are just as critical as homicides because they’re non-successful homicides,” Craig said. “You look at our non-fatal shootings this year and we’ve seen a decline.”
At the end of 2015, there were a few shootings that seemed particularly senseless. Anthony Tolson was carjacked and killed on Christmas Eve on Detroit’s east side. Chanell Berry, 7, was shot and killed while opening Christmas gifts after an argument on Detroit’s west side.
“When you look back and look at Detroit as the most violent city in America, have we become desensitized?” asked Craig. “Have we begun to accept that violence happens in Detroit and it’s OK?”
Craig said that carjacking is an anomaly in other cities, but it seems like a part of life in Detroit.
The conversation shifted to the issues of mental health in America. Devin and Chief Craig were joined by Dr. Carmen McIntyre, Chief Medical Officer for the Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority.
Chief Craig calls mental health a public safety crisis.
“Right now, the way the law works, you actually have to have dangerous behavior demonstrated in the last 72 hours before you can actually be required to have treatment,” said Dr. McIntyre.
Dr. McIntyre discussed the stigma of having a mental health issue and how that stigma keeps people from seeking treatment.
The conversation about the state of Detroit with Chief Craig is available in the video above and the mental health discussion is available in the video to the right.
There are a lot of projects planned for Detroit in 2016 and John Gallagher, business writer for the Detroit Free Press, looked at what he’s most excited about.
Gallagher said about a 1,000 new apartments are under construction and that another 1,500 are planned for this year.
They discussed the new hockey arena and the district that will surround it, as well as the M1 rail which will connect it to downtown and New Center.
“M1 is mostly going to benefit the immediate downtown but not much outside of that,” Gallagher said.
They talked about retail and restaurants, but the concern Gallagher has is that the neighborhoods still aren’t seeing the drastic changes. The discussion about 2016 projects is available in the video below.