City of Rochester
News Release
(Aug. 24, 2009) - Mayor Robert J. Duffy is in Washington, D.C. at the invitation of the White House today to participate in a conference on gang-violence reduction and crime control hosted by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
The White House Conference on Gang Violence Prevention and Crime Control features moderated panels and discussion sessions addressing crucial topics such as effective local policing strategies, disrupting gang recruitment, philanthropic involvement in community partnerships and the role of the federal government in supporting community-driven solutions to gang violence and criminal activity. U.S. Attorney General Holder and Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy Gil Kerlikowske will make keynote remarks.
Mayor Duffy, Rochester’s former police chief and a 28-year veteran of the Rochester Police Department, is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ Criminal and Social Justice Committee. He is among a select group of U.S. mayors, police chiefs, community leaders and scholars who have gathered to discuss emerging strategies to combat gang violence and criminal activity.
He has been asked to be part of a panel that will discuss the formation of inter-governmental partnerships to reduce gang activity and disrupt crime. As police chief, Mayor Duffy played an instrumental role in the creation of Operation IMPACT, a statewide anti-crime initiative that, among other things, brings State Police and county Sheriff's Office deputies into urban areas to help fight crime.
“It is my great honor to take part in a conference that is addressing one of the most important issues in America today, gang violence,” Mayor Duffy said. “This is a matter of national security that should have equal footing with the war on terror. I look forward to sharing my insights into this issue and learning from some of the brightest minds in our country.”
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