ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The three candidates running for Orange County mayor are speaking out about their approach to dealing with crime following a rash of shootings in parts of the county.
“Crime is a byproduct of social programs. If we try to solve crimes with law enforcement alone, we will fail,” said Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings, who is running for Orange County Mayor. “We have got to have a four-pronged approach; we have focus on prevention and intervention, we have to focus on enforcement and we have to focus on prosecution.”
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Demings said if he is elected mayor, he will focus on investing in programs that prevent crime by giving young people skills and opportunities. Citing his work with the YMCA and Boy Scouts, Demings said it is important for the county to use its budget to partner with organizations that provide services in the community.
“I think the Orange County mayor and commission do have an obligation to communicate some of these broader challenges, because it reflects on the community,“ said candidate Rob Panepinto. “Crime statistics are all well and good, but people’s perception about crime is very much an emotional issue.”
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Panepinto is advocating increased collaboration between the county commission and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office as well as local police. He said it’s important for open positions within the sheriff’s office to be filled quickly, pointing to an October report from 9 Investigates showing vacancies within the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
For the third man in the race, Orange County Commissioner Pete Clarke, the answer to fighting crime is a mixture of both approaches.
“I want to know if we should have more substations, have more deputies have a place to go to do their paperwork,” said Clarke. “We need to get them out into the community.”
Clarke points to funding increases approved by the commission, saying that should help with staffing.
While funding would help, Clarke said the county needs to partner with for-profit and nonprofit groups to help transform areas, saying everything from housing to lighting to neighborhood engagement can help eliminate crime.