Birmingham officials’ anger over a weekend mass shooting was slightly tempered Tuesday by a vote to fund for another year a juvenile re-entry program that’s shown success in reducing violence.

Speaking about the recent shooting Tuesday, Councilor Crystal Smitherman said she will support any plan the mayor has to make the city feel safe again.

“Lock it down if you have to. Ask for help, but just know you have my 100 percent support,” she told Mayor Randall Woodfin.

Smitherman’s comments come just three days after gunmen killed four people and injured 17 others after opening fire at a line of patrons waiting to enter a Hookah bar in Five Points South Saturday night.

Birmingham police say at least one of the shooters used an illegally modified firearm in the shooting. Investigators believe the attackers were targeting one of the four victims.

Woodfin said the conversion devices that turn semiautomatic pistols fully automatic have no place in domestic streets. He told the council that the city is partnering with the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama as part of Operation Flip the Switch.

The program allows Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama to offer cash rewards for information resulting in a warrant being issued or an arrest being made of someone who possesses the devices, often called Glock switches, or 3D printers being used to manufacture them.

Woodfin also said Birmingham police will provide additional manpower to the city’s entertainment districts.

“We are singularly focused on public safety,” Woodfin said.

Re-Entry Program Shows Results

The council on Tuesday also approved $225,000 to fund another year of the Jefferson County Restore program.

Launched in March 2023, Restore provides comprehensive services and support for youth ages 16 to 19 who have gone through Jefferson County Family Court and been placed in state custody at a Department of Youth Services facility.

Carrie Buntain, the Jefferson County Family Resource Center Executive Director, told the council that though the teens served by Restore aren’t necessarily the ones pulling a trigger or being shot, each one has suffered trauma.

“We are really trying hard to deal with the trauma that these kids are facing, losing two to three family members in a year as a 15-, 16- or 17-year-old is intense,” she said. “But by focusing on them and having day-to-day contact, we are able to gauge their state of mind and where they are, and to the best of our ability, we are able to be a stopgap to really effectively make sure they are not talking about retaliation — that they are talking about how to articulate their feelings.”

When it launched, the Restore program set out to help 129 children in the age group. Buntain said the program ended up helping 249 in its first year.

That included 1,393 contacts made with clients, 190 mentor sessions and 703 services provided to participants and their families, according to officials with the group.

Since the Restore program started, Buntain said, Birmingham has seen an 80% reduction in youth charged with murder as well as a 60% reduction in victims aged 13-22.

Smitherman thanked everyone involved with the program for making such progress for the city’s youth.

“These kids are the future of this city, and we have to support them every step of the way,” Smitherman said. “I’m very encouraged by the data we’ve seen from this past year, and I look forward to making an even bigger impact over the next 12 months.”

After Buntain’s presentation to the council, Smitherman shared responses from local 11- to 15-year-olds who were asked about violence as part of a community needs assessment.

To the question “How do you describe violence in your community?” One child said, “It’s everywhere.”

Answering the question “What do you think could prevent violence in your community?” One participant said, “They make guns where you do not have to have a permit and anyone can get a gun. They took away the license and anyone can get one. They should require licenses again.”

Alabama lawmakers passed a law in 2022 that gives residents 19 and older who are not disqualified from owning a firearm the ability to carry a concealed firearm without a permit. Woodfin and other Birmingham leaders have cited the law as a reason for a recent uptick in gun violence in the city.

Continuing to quote from the study, Smitherman shared answers to the question, “What does survival look like?”

“‘Staying in your house.’ ‘Minding your own business,”’ the councilor said. “And the worst one for me, ‘Getting out of Birmingham.’”

Smitherman said she wants to give the answers to her state representatives.

In other business, the council approved a $45,000 agreement for Mercy Deliverance Ministries to operate a mobile grocery store for Birmingham’s low-income households.

The money comes partly from pandemic relief funds assigned to Councilor LaTonya Tate to serve her district.

Under the agreement, Mercy Deliverance will provide free food boxes that contain healthy, fresh meals multiple times per week to improve food security for qualifying families in District 9.