PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Portsmouth City Council will hold a special meeting on Tuesday to address what needs to be done about crime in the city. This comes as Portsmouth has seen an alarming amount of crime in the first two months of 2022.
As of Monday, there have been seven deadly shootings in the city for the month of February. A total of 14 shootings have happened this month, leaving 17 injured.
"Tomorrow, the meeting is to discuss crime, to see if we’re using all the possibly resources that were given to us or told to us and also to do a review of the city manager. I think that the city manager can do a better job," De’Andre Barnes, Portsmouth's vice mayor, tells News 3 reporter Leondra Head.
Barnes says one of the key issues is a lack of funding for non-profit organizations.
"I think that we have about 20-something organizations that if we work with all of them and put funding into their programs that we can really address some of these issues," Barnes said.
Barnes also took the time to call out Portsmouth Mayor Shannon Glover.
"Our mayor got on the news last week and said we plan on implementing a plan, but that’s just not true. So, it’s just time to stop giving the city a false security and really address these issues. He [Mayor Glover] called it 'safe neighborhoods' or something... we did not talk about that. From my understanding, that was a meeting put together by the police department to introduce things that he was invited to. I think he mentioned we’re going to discuss that tomorrow. We’re not. That’s not what the meeting is for," Barnes said.
City council members say their main goal in Tuesday’s meeting is to present resources to curb crime in Portsmouth.
Related: Portsmouth City Manager: 'The city is doing all it can to curtail gun violence'
