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The Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia (OAG) is committed to innovative solutions that make the District safer. Acting on that commitment, OAG launched a violence interruption pilot program called “Cure the Streets” in 2018 and is now expanding the program. Today, OAG is announcing new community-based partner organizations that will open and operate four new Cure the Streets sites in neighborhoods that experience high levels of violence.

What is Cure the Streets?
Cure the Streets is a violence interruption pilot program that operates currently in two sites - one in Ward 5 and one in Ward 8 - with some of the highest rates of gun violence in the District. In August 2018, OAG launched this program with support from the Council of the District of Columbia, and in partnership with the National Association for the Advancement of Returning Citizens. Based on the Cure Violence model, this program uses public-health strategies that treat violence like a disease that can be interrupted, treated, and stopped from spreading. The program hires and trains neighborhood residents who are credible in their community to work as “violence interrupters,” who work to de-escalate violent situations and prevent crime before it occurs. Along with the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement’s violence interruption program, Cure the Streets is working to help District residents feel safer.

How is Cure the Streets expanding?
With the support of the D.C. Council, OAG is extending the violence interruption pilot program to four additional sites: two in Ward 8, one in Ward 7, and one in Ward 5. Today, OAG is announcing the community-based organizations who will be operating these new sites.

These organizations were selected competitively through a rigorous process which evaluated their relationships and credibility with high-risk individuals in the target areas and their ability to successfully manage a program of this size. These organizations also demonstrated a readiness to learn the Cure Violence model and adhere to rigorous data-collection requirements.

The organizations partnering with OAG to expand Cure the Streets in the District are:

• The Alliance of Concerned Men (ACM), which will be operating a Ward 8 and a Ward 7 site.
• Father Factor Inc. (Murder Free DC), which will be operating a Ward 8 and a Ward 5 site.

The specific locations of the new sites will be announced in the coming weeks.

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AG Racine is committed to data-driven solutions that enhance public safety in the District. Learn more about OAG’s public safety efforts surrounding restorative justice, juvenile diversion, and more.