By Intern Ramsey Groves

 

On June 5, 2009, I was given the opportunity to attend a Cease-Fire meeting in the main conference room of our office. The Cease-Fire Project is a gun and gang violence reduction program, and a number of individuals involved in fighting crime attend these meetings. Ray, several Assistant Commonwealth's Attorneys, attorneys from both the Fayette County Attorney's Office and the U.S. Attorney's Office, and other law enforcement officers were present for this particular meeting. The officers attended because they recently dealt with a case that involved guns and/or gang violence. Each officer then discussed the specifics of their case, and the attorneys decided which agency would prosecute. The attorneys reached a decision by assessing which agency would be able to impose the harshest penalty, and the case at hand was then passed to that agency.

The combination of working in the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office and observing the Cease-Fire meeting made me realize just how important this particular project is to the community. Prior to this internship, I had no clue that there was a gang problem in Lexington! I also didn't realize that there were so many gun related crimes in this area! To be honest, after reading some of the cases that are prosecuted by our office, I'll think twice before walking my puppy at night or leaving my apartment door unlocked. I feel much safer knowing that Ray and others are working hard to ensure that particularly violent criminals are appropriately punished. The Cease-Fire Project is working hard to make the community safer, one criminal at a time.

Peter's Comments:  "I entered the Cease-Fire meeting with the expectation that the attorneys from the different governmental offices would exhibit an inherent rivalry. My assumption was that the U.S. Attorneys would act superior to the Commonwealth's Attorneys and the County Attorneys. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised by the cooperation between the offices. They all maintained a common goal of most efficiently bringing the suspects to justice. If one office had a better case than the other, there seemed to be little debate that they would be the best to prosecute.

As a whole, Cease-Fire seems to be an excellent way for the different attorneys offices to make sure they are on the same page, share information about each defendant, and ensure that their approach to prosecution is well organized. Not only will this program help to keep criminals off of our streets faster, but also it fosters a growing partnership between the different levels of government that will make cases more consistent and stronger."

Ally's Comments:  "Like Pete, I automatically assumed the attorneys from the different levels of government would argue more or compete for the cases they wanted. However, they were extremely cooperative and effective in assigning cases to each office. I was expecting the Cease-Fire meeting to take a few hours; yet it was over in 45 minutes. It was most likely attributed to the attorneys' proficient preparation and dedication to the program.

I learned a great deal about criminal activity in Lexington from attending the Cease-Fire meeting. I was surprised to hear what kinds of crime are most common in our area and that many of these crimes are committed by the same criminals over and over again. The Cease-Fire program enables the attorneys from all levels of government to come together, compare notes, and stop these relentless criminals from committing yet another crime."