What Might Work?

And yet, street outreach remains under-resourced. Philanthropic groups provide much of the funding, though earlier this year Lightfoot pledged $6 million in city funds to street outreach efforts. More is needed. Arthur says the ranks of street outreach workers need to be doubled, or even quadrupled. At READI, it costs $20,000 annually to pay for each participant. But a year in an Illinois prison costs $38,000. “It’s not a cheap program,” Bocanegra tells us. “But when you compare it to prison? What we pay as taxpayers … for police, for the cost of detention? We’re not educating the public about that comparison.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/opinion/editorials/ct-editorial-chicago-gun-violence-street-outreach-20200710-avvwmgr2j5eghkfpamtjxfecyq-story.html