Jefferson County Commission
JeffCo Commissioners Call for Change in Combating Violence as Mayor Woodfin Attends White House Signing
In the wake of a mass shooting that killed four and injured 17 others Saturday night, members of the Jefferson County Commission on Thursday called for change in combating violence in the metro area, particularly in Birmingham.
“Life is about expectations, and we need to expect more,” Commission President Jimmie Stephens said. “We need to demand more. Our children need a safe place to grow up and be able to raise their family. We need safe thoroughfares to and from work and schools.”
The shooting happened shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday as people lined up to get into a lounge in 5 Points South. Birmingham Police have said the injury count was high because the shooters used guns equipped with conversion devices, often called Glock switches. The devices turn semi-automatic guns into automatic weapons, albeit wildly inaccurate ones.
In the aftermath of the mass shooting, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin joined President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in the East Room of the White House on Thursday for an event to address gun violence in America.
Woodfin stood alongside Biden as he signed an executive order that, among other measures, establishes a task force to investigate the threats posed by machine-gun-conversion devices.
“Saving lives should not be partisan,” the mayor said at the President’s podium. “Saving lives should not be Democrat or a Republican thing. Saving lives shouldn’t be political. Saving lives is the most American thing we can do together.
“We’ve been working with our U.S. Attorney and the Justice Department to get machine gun (converters) like Glock switches off our city streets,” Woodfin continued. “But still my community and still other communities are still finding the use of these devices at crime scene after crime scene. That is why I’m grateful to our president, I’m grateful to our vice president as well for taking action.”
Saturday’s incident drew national and international attention. Stephens said that publicity sends the wrong message about the metro area.
“Commissioner (Mike) Bolin, the management staff – we work hard to bring economic development into the city and into Jefferson County,” Stephens said, “and one random act of violence can completely cancel everything that we’ve done.”
Moments earlier, Commissioner Lashunda Scales solicited prayer for Birmingham. She cited several instances of recent gun deaths in the vicinity of her District 1 home in Birmingham.
“We just gotta be intolerable when it comes down to bad behavior,” Scales said.
“But I want to say for us to continue, not only pray for Birmingham, but pray for the people who live in Birmingham, pray for people who do business in Birmingham,” she said. “We just need help.”
County Support for Violence Control
Scales also said she’s thankful the commission provides a lot of money for the Sheriff’s Department, which can then provide support for the Birmingham Police Department.
“But it would behoove everyone to find out that the sheriff does not control the police chief,” she said. “The sheriff’s department is doing the very best that they can with the resources that they do have. I just want to tell them thank you because we’ve had a lot of assistance that are showing up in these communities.”
Stephens referenced Gov. Kay Ivey’s comments that she would be prepared to work with Birmingham-area officials to set up a multi-jurisdictional crime suppression unit, similar to the one now operating in Montgomery.
Stephens encouraged Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway to work with county municipalities on such a task force “and change these expectations of these criminals.”
“Two out of three say they’re going to get away with it in Birmingham and we do not want that,” Stephens said.