ATLANTA — Officials provided an update on its "Operation Heatwave" Thursday evening. This is the second year of the initiative in an effort to combat gang activity within the city.
Among the speakers at the press conference included Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum, Fulton County District Attorney Dani Willis, State Attorney General Chris Carr, APD Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr., and APD Captain Ralph Woolfolk.
"Operation Heatwave 2023 has been a success," Willis said. "We're very, very proud to have been invited to be a part of it."
Breaking down the data
APD's data shows this year's operation resulted in a total of 89 arrests -- 39 of those arrests being known gang members. Additionally, the data revealed 16 people are now facing gang charges and there have been a total of 56 guns recovered.
During the press conference, Willis said to date this year -- there has been an increase in gang warrants by 370%. Additionally from Jan. 1 - Aug. 31, there have also been over 100 gang convictions, Willis added.
"Those are 100 cases where gang members are off of our streets," Willis said.
Additionally, Atlanta's homicides are down by 29% and overall crime in the city and in Fulton County is down 21%, Willis said.
"It is a huge accomplishment," Willis said. "These are initiatives that have saved real lives. And we are not fooled, we don't think that the work is over but we know that this partnership and programs such as Atlanta Heatwave are making a real difference."
Efforts to combat gang activity
Atlanta Police Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr. also spoke about the department's primary focus for the operation: gangs, guns and drugs.
"We use technology, we use intel, analysts -- who we have hired. We continue to expand that program who help our investigators in the background to fight crime," Hampton said. "Every four days, we are dismantling some type of drug operation inside the city of Atlanta."
APD Captain Ralph Woolfolk added the department looks at intelligence-led data to combat gang activity around the city.
"We're going specifically after individuals that we know are driving violent crime in our city," Woolfolk said.
On June 22, APD said undercover units spotted 19-year-old Willie Dennis, an alleged gang member. He was wanted in connection to the murder of 16-year-old Bre'Asia Powell -- a Mays High School student who was shot and killed during a graduation party.
"We're losing too many of our children to gangs and the people that we sometimes, as citizens, are angry about are our own children because they are being recruited into the gangs. Those are the people we are going to target -- for recruiting our children," Willis said.
Community-based initiatives
The district attorney added that she thinks the teen curfew has been effective, along with other initiatives such as Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens' Midnight Basketball program.
Willis stressed there needs to be a multi-tiered approach -- not just straight conviction, to continue addressing the problem.
"We're also going to try to do things to keep children out of this lifestyle. It sounds cliché at this point but it only adds to jail cells and caskets," she said. "And we are trying to keep our children out of cells and we're trying to keep them out of caskets."
You can re-watch the press conference below.
MORE WAYS TO GET 11ALIVE
- Download our streaming app on Roku and Fire TV
- Download the 11Alive News mobile app
- Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
- Watch live streams on YouTube
- Look at our TV guide to see when we're airing on cable TV
The 11Alive Speed Feed offers a curated experience of top local stories we’re following right now on all our platforms, delivered right to your inbox every day at noon. Our goal is to help you feel informed, even if you only have five minutes. Sign up here.