“Sadly, I’ve dedicated my life to using facts and data to influence crime policy. I don’t think we’re any better at it than we were 30 years ago,” Butts said. He has seen both Democrats and Republicans try to use crime stats to scare voters. It’s hard to stop them because “politics was way out ahead of information and the facts.”
NBC News — Activist Group Works to Combat Gun Violence in NYC
Jeffrey Butts interviewed by NBC News for a story about community-based violence prevention efforts in New York City.
Philadelphia Inquirer — There’s Nothing More Progressive than Stopping City Kids from Getting Shot
Progressive-minded criminologists like Roman or Butts are boosters of community antiviolence intervention programs such as the Cure Violence model, in which more mature people from the neighborhood work as “violence interrupters” and seek to mediate disputes or defuse tensions before they get out of hand.
The Matt McNeil Show — AM950 Minneapolis
Interview on the Matt McNeil Show in Minneapolis.
El Mecurio — La Pandemia Impulsa el Mayor Aumento de la Violencia con Armas en EE.UU. en 50 Años
Jeffrey Butts interviewed as part of a story about recent gun violence trends in the United States.
Univision — Cuomo Declara una Emergencia por la Violencia Armada en Nueva York
Jeffrey Butts interviewed as part of a story about the New York Governor's announcement of gun violence prevention initiatives.
ABC News — Feds Warned Last Spring of Spike in Violence and Extremism During Pandemic: Memo
"We were already in a weakened condition when the pandemic hit -- class divisions, overt racism, partisanship, a really poor social support infrastructure -- so if you think about the effect of the pandemic on an 'epidemic' of shootings -- it's like the immune system of the United States was already suppressed," Jeffrey Butts, director of the research and evaluation center at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told ABC News.
CNN — US LAW ENFORCEMENT ‘VERY NERVOUS’ ABOUT PROACTIVE POLICING AS GUN VIOLENCE SOARS
"I'm an older white guy. I'm going to stop, I don't feel threatened," said Jeffrey Butts, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "There are people whose rational expectation is that (the stop) puts them in danger. They're going to have different response. It's amazing to me that we haven't confronted that and individual police officers don't think about that. They're just shocked and angered by someone daring to not comply."
Christian Science Monitor — US Saw Biggest Spike in Gun Violence in 50 Years. Don’t Panic Yet.
Experts caution that while law enforcement is a vital part of public safety, police should be one part in a larger package of solutions. There are well-tested methods that decrease violence, but implementing them at scale will require patience, nuance, and a willingness to think past political narratives.
