Cape Girardeau Gun Violence Task Force members announced; first meeting set for Tuesday

Members of the City of Cape Girardeau’s newly formed Gun Violence Task Force will gather for the first time next week.

The task force has sent out its first agenda and will have its planning meeting at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 23, at City Hall.

A news release stated that the committee’s work could result in ordinance, policy and program recommendations that will be made to the City Council in December. According to the release, the committee is expected to host a series of expert presentations starting in August.

Mayor Stacy Kinder stated in the release the purpose of the committee is to develop ideas on what might be the appropriate municipal work to do to “lessen” gun violence.

“The task force will explore various systems and partnerships already in place, delve into what the city can or should do to support or improve them, and also consider what the city could be doing differently to combat gun violence,” Kinder stated. “It is the most pressing public safety concern we see on our city streets right now.”

The release stated that the topics covered within the year partly will be determined in the first planning session. Topics already included are “a review of local data, chronic nuisance property policies and other current laws, nonprofit programs, support for at-risk youth, and successful case studies and initiatives from other communities,” according to the release.

Kinder said in the release that there is a great group of community and city leaders on the task force to look at these issues — co-chairman Adam Kidd; co-chairwoman Jessica Hill, executive director of Safe House of Southeast Missouri; Cape Girardeau Public Schools superintendent Howard Benyon; Nita DuBose; Alix Gasser, development director of Southeast Missouri Network Against Sexual Violence; Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce president Rob Gilligan; Ritter Real Estate’s Jared Ritter; Cape Central High School principal Nancy Scheller; Lee Schlitt; Laura Selbo; Community Partnership of Southeast Missouri executive director Melissa Stickel; Adrian Taylor; Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Clint Tracy; former Ward 5 Councilwoman Shannon Truxel: Southeast Missouri State University president Carlos Vargas; Amber Walker; Lynn Ware: Moms Demand Action’s Leslie Washington; and Tina Wright.

The non-voting council liaisons included on the task force are Kinder, city manager Ken Haskin, assistant chief of police Adam Glueck, city public information manger Nicolette Brennan, city clerk Gayle Conrad, Co-Responder Unit’s Shannon Farris, fire chief Randy Morris and assistant city manager Trevor Pulley.

“We’re open to new ideas that will help us support our own departments, and coordinate with the community,” Kinder said in the release.