TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — A panel of six people gathered Wednesday to discuss the intersection of crime, homelessness and media coverage in Tucson, hosted by the Center for Just Journalism and Hey Joe Media.
Pima County Attorney Laura Conover addressed emphasized the need for data-driven, solution-oriented approaches to pedestrian safety and deaths.
Conover highlighted Tucson's high rate of pedestrian deaths compared to the rest of the country. She said preventing these deaths requires adequate resources including signage, lighting and law enforcement presence.
However, Conover stressed that law enforcement resources must be allocated strategically.
“When we talked later tonight about whether it's a good idea to try to chase every single fentanyl pill one by one, I'm going to be thinking about precious allocation of limited resources," Conover said.
When questioned by the moderator about why she doesn't prosecute certain drug-related crimes, Conover explained her office's approach.
"We're looking for the ongoing threat of harm, we're looking for the harm that was caused, the assaulted behavior. We will prosecute as we need to do," Conover said.
There rest of the crime involved, Conover said, is examined by her office which can merit the offender to be diverted into pre-indictment and drug courts.
Dr. Jesus Magana, another panelist and clinical director, spoke about being a clinical director for refugees and migrants. He spoke on his experiences helping people who were incarcerated and people who experience houselessness.
"My role here is to be able to highlight the intersectionality between trauma, and crime, and incarceration," Magana said.
Magana explained that people who are chronically unhoused and incarcerated have high rates of trauma and substance abuse.
"The work that I do with my clients, and it's really the work that I think human beings and humanity is really trying to do is how do we feel more safe within ourselves and in our community?" Magana said.
All panelists discussed media coverage of crime, homelessness and transit issues. They emphasized that these conversations need to involve more community members.
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Andrew Christiansen is a reporter for KGUN 9. Before joining the team, Andrew reported in Corpus Christi, Texas for KRIS6 News, Action 10 News and guest reported in Spanish for Telemundo Corpus Christi. Share your story ideas with Andrew by emailing andrew.christiansen@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, or Twitter.
