‘Enough is enough’: City council president calls for community policing to help stop violence in Providence

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) – Following a violent weekend in the capital city, a top city councilor is calling for a solution.

Providence City Council President John Igliozzi said he wants to see the city bring back community policing, and thinks it’ll help curb the growing issue of violence.

“Throughout the city, there’s a sense of lawlessness. You have ATVs running amuck up and down our streets and sidewalks, you have gangs thinking they can have open shootouts in our neighborhoods,” said Igliozzi. “We just talk about bringing back something that’s always worked in the past, it can work today, which is a city-wide community policing action.”

Just after midnight Sunday, two stabbings took place in Providence. One on Union Avenue at Route 10 and another at Broad and Fricker streets.

Around 3:30 Sunday morning, a 24-year-old woman was shot and killed on Olney Street in a drive-by shooting that police believe was random.

Shortly after, another shooting took place on Reservoir Avenue where five people were injured.

“People that were stabbed this weekend, and shot at this weekend, and also got killed this weekend, murdered in cold blood, you know, that’s horrific. That is just something that all of us need to now band together and say enough is enough.”

Igliozzi thinks more police officers on the streets will help and make neighborhoods safer.

“Having those officers be embedded in our neighborhoods, knowing our constituents, knowing the community, knowing that Mr. Jones’s store is gonna be closed next week, knowing that Mrs. Smith is sick on the third floor, knowing what’s happening in the playground or the schoolyard…that sense of empathy that’s created between the community and police force makes us a stronger, healthier, safe neighborhood or city, and that’s what we’re trying to achieve again.”

But staffing is an issue. The Providence Police Department has just over 400 officers, but more than 100 of them are eligible for retirement. Igliozzi said the current police academy class has just 50 officers set to graduate soon.

“The police department used to have almost 500 at one time, and then for the past 10 years, past couple administrations has basically let it decline almost below 400. So now the problem we have is, you don’t even have enough police officers to do even the regular job. How many officers do you see walking a beat? How many officers do you see on a bicycle? They don’t have the man and womanpower anymore.”

Igliozzi said the city council allots money in the budget each year for the police academy, but they don’t have a say for what it’s spent on.

“Unfortunately the administration has constantly used the money for other things, so, I pledge this year like we did again, did put money for an academy, we have an academy graduating, we put money again in the budget and it passed again by majority of the council and I pledge that next year’s budget we’re gonna put more money in for another academy.”

Mike Imondi, president of the Providence police union, said 150 calls for service were made on Sunday in Providence. He said more officers are needed to achieve the goal of community policing.

“We can’t fill the specialized units necessary to reduce crime and gun violence. We also need the proper support which we haven’t received from the mayor or commissioner,” said Imondi.

On Tuesday at his weekly media availability, Governor Dan McKee said he’s concerned about the violence in Providence and commended the council president for speaking up.

“I’m happy that the council president Igliozzi spoke out. I think that that’s what is necessary right now is leadership in the city to speak out on the issue,” said McKee.

He added that his offer still stands to provide state police help to the city.

“Our office stands, in terms of providing whatever resources that the city requests, whether it comes through the city council or whether that comes through the mayor’s office.”

ABC6 reached out to Mayor Jorge Elorza’s office for comment but did not hear back. The Providence Police Department declined to comment.

© WLNE-TV 2021