The killing of two boys in south Little Rock was on the minds of many at a community meeting on youth violence prevention in Pulaski County. 13-year-old Donta Gurley and 14-year-old Naqualo Smith were gunned down on Sunday, Dec. 3.
Sergeant Willie Davis of the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office and the Okay Program of Pulaski County said the community could be doing a better job of collaborating to help troubled youth and their parents. He said he thinks groups that have not traditionally collaborated in the past could finally come together to help at-risk youth. He noted that he has been to community meetings with law enforcement in attendance but the public and law enforcement were segregated and did not interact.
“To get to where we are comfortable, we have to be uncomfortable. It’s about relationships,” said Davis.
The meeting was organized by 100 Families, an initiative of the nonprofit Restore Hope. 100 Families provides communities with a proven service model that connects many types of service providers to help a person or family in crisis in a holistic manner.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Casey Beard of the Juvenile Division in the 6th Judicial District said one of her goals is implementing a group violence intervention program with surrounding counties.
"As far as tangible goals, we do have a goal of trying to come up with some good prosecutorial diversion methods," Beard said. "We might start linking families and their children primarily to services before filing it in court."
Sandra Hawkins, the Pulaski County Area Director of the Arkansas Department of Human Services’ Division of Children and Family Services, said some parents in crisis seem afraid to reach out to DHS for help.
“We want to work with families so they will know what resources are available and where they can go for help before it gets to a situation in which DHS is called or they are in juvenile court. People don’t know where to go. As for DHS, people are scared because they think we want to take their children. Some parents don’t know that they can come to the office to ask for assistance."
Hawkins said that families can call the DHS office and ask to speak to someone in Children and Family Services who can connect them to resources that might help them.
“They may need to know where a food pantry is if they need some food. Sometimes it’s not an abuse or neglect issue, it’s just a person that needs some help,” said Hawkins.
Kale Thomas, the Bright Futures Coordinator in the Jacksonville North Pulaski School District. Bright Futures is a community initiative within the school district to streamline getting students resources when they are in need.
“I'm a firm believer in that one of the only ways to help negative behaviors is relationship. And so we're trying to build a stable relationships with these scholars when we have them,” said Thomas.
Bright Futures is a nationwide program designed to identify the needs of students beyond academics and lend assistance. Thomas said services like community-wide food pantries and clothing closets are necessary.
Smart Justice is a magazine, podcast, and continuing news coverage from the nonprofit Restore Hope and covers the pursuit of better outcomes on justice system-related issues, such as child welfare, incarceration, and juvenile justice. Our coverage is solutions-oriented, focusing on the innovative ways in which communities are solving issues and the lessons that have been learned as a result of successes and challenges.
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