Remarks of Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon at the 2022 National Public Safety Partnership Violent Crime Reduction Summit, Tulsa, OK (as prepared for delivery)

      Thank you, Karhlton [Moore]. I am so excited to be here and so pleased to hear, first-hand, some of the outstanding work being done to protect the people of this great city. I also want to thank U.S. Attorney [Clint] Johnson, Mayor [G.T.] Bynum and Chief [Wendell] Franklin for their hospitality and for continuing a tradition of National Public Safety Partnership sites that have stepped up to host this important summit.

      It’s an honor to join Karhlton, Deputy Attorney General [Lisa] Monaco, U.S. Attorney Johnson and leaders here in Tulsa and throughout the nation. I’m so very encouraged to see this strong collective commitment to the safety of America’s communities.

      We’ve seen how this commitment is playing out in PSP sites across the country. Many of the sites have seen drops in violent crime, dramatic drops in some cases, and the reductions are greater the longer the jurisdictions are engaged with PSP. Clearance rates for homicide are going up. Gun tracing and ballistic analysis are more effective and efficient. And law enforcement is working more closely with victims, setting up family justice centers and victim service units.

      These successes, and many others like them, are possible because concerned and engaged leaders like so many in this room put their finger on a problem, designed thoughtful solutions and are doing what they need to do to get the job done.

      The National Public Safety Partnership has helped jurisdictions large and small meet their most pressing challenges, and I’m proud of the job that Karhlton and his team in our Bureau of Justice Assistance have done to lead this vital initiative. And I’m pleased that components across the Department of Justice, including the Office of Justice Programs, are supporting strategies designed to strengthen communities, build bonds of trust and deliver on the promise of public safety and equal justice that are among the first responsibilities of government.

      I am excited about what we have managed to accomplish together, and I am very optimistic about the progress we have positioned ourselves to achieve in the months ahead. I commend you all for your hard work and dedication, and I look forward to our continued partnership as we join together to protect the people of our communities.

      It is now my pleasure to introduce our next speaker, and our Justice Department host for this summit.

      Clint Johnson has been leading the Department’s work to reduce crime and violence in the Northern District of Oklahoma since March of 2021, and is coming up on the one-year anniversary of his appointment as U.S. Attorney. He is a career federal prosecutor with extensive experience in prosecuting gang, drug and violent felony cases. He also boasts a distinguished career in the Army’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps—and we are so grateful for his service to our country.

      I want to thank him, on behalf of the Office of Justice Programs, for welcoming us to his district and for the outstanding work he and his team are doing to keep communities in northern Oklahoma safe. Please welcome U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

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