ATLANTA — Governor Brian Kemp announced an increase in funding to help law enforcement fight crime across the state on Monday.
Kemp said that $5 million will be provided to state law enforcement from the Governor's Emergency Fund in an effort to suppress crime across metro Atlanta, according a release sent by his office.
The announcement comes as concerns for violence across the city continue to grow.
“It’s no secret that our capital city has a serious crime problem – we see it covered in the news almost every day," Kemp said in a video announcement.
Last week, 11Alive verified that the likelihood of being shot in Atlanta is higher than in Chicago -- once you adjust for population.
Data from Atlanta Police on all the shootings in 2021 were broken down by day of the week, month, locations, age, even the race of the victims.
It’s important to note, this information is based on whether a person was shot, not just a shooting overall.
Looking at where the shootings happened so far, the Downtown area has the highest victim county, with 23 people. Next is the Castleberry Hill neighborhood, with 11 victims. Midtown is in the top four with nine victims. Neighborhoods like Vine City, Campbellton Road, and Highland Terrace have five. English Avenue and Mechanicsville have four, with Buckhead Village and Old Fourth Ward have four.
Kemp said he tasked Colonel Chris Wright, Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, to do everything he can to "bring crime in Atlanta under control." A crime suppression unit including state troopers, local officers, and other state law enforcement partners was created to effort the task.
"To double down on these successful efforts, today I am announcing this partnership of brave law enforcement officers at the state and local level will now have access to increased funding through the Governor’s Emergency Fund to strengthen their presence in communities across metro Atlanta," Kemp said in a video announcement.
Kemp said, "The state of Georgia will continue to use every resource at its disposal to rid our communities of crime and keep Georgia families safe."