Moore: Better support of crime victims, witnesses needed

East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore III continued touting a new crime-fighting initiative targeting the 70805 ZIP code, telling the Baton Rouge Press Club today that the Operation Ceasefire–style program nicknamed Project BRAVE will beef up patrols in the north Baton Rouge community and let criminal groups in the area know they will all be held accountable for one member’s actions. Moore recently gave a similar address to the Rotary Club of Baton Rouge. “I surely want to get the message out. The community’s moral voice is important, as is its support,” says Moore, who estimates victims and witnesses in 70% of shootings don’t cooperate with police. Getting community support behind those victims and witnesses is how the city-parish intends to reduce violent crime through Project BRAVE, which is short for Baton Rouge Area Violence Elimination. Moore says by September, the city-parish will know if it’s eligible for a federal Ceasefire grant that would make $250,000 to $500,000 available to law enforcement for each of the next three years. The program would begin in October if funding were available. But it could take months to show success. Moore says criminal group members—he stresses the city-parish doesn’t have gangs—would be rounded up by knocking on doors and getting probation officers involved. Then they’ll be told if there’s a shooting and whether a member is a suspect; the group members with any outstanding warrant will be rounded up and have bail recommendations connected to the shooting made to a judge. “We can only suggest things like that” to a judge, Moore says. —Adam Pearson