TACKLING PUBLIC SAFETY

Article by Daniel J. Brooks, Director of Business Advocacy, Billings Chamber of Commerce,
and Marya Pennington, Owner of Moxie

Public safety in Billings has received a lot of attention over the last decade. The Billings Chamber
of Commerce continues to hear from members how important addressing public safety is to
their business interests. City candidates in recent elections tout public safety as their number one
priority. Newspapers are eager to publish attention-grabbing headlines about public safety issues.
We’ve even heard feedback from Montanans in our region who shop here and consider “packing heat”
on their Billings visits.

While public safety concerns need to be addressed, they also shouldn’t be overstated. We need to
consider everything in context, with a full picture of what’s happening. Concerns over public safety
are often followed with, “Why isn’t anyone doing something about it?” The fact is a lot is getting
done. Because there is much to learn about public safety, the Billings Chamber hosted a public safety
forum earlier this year featuring a panel of local officials. Across the board, the community is making
strides toward a safer Billings, and the Chamber hopes to change the question above to, “How do I
help to be part of the solution?”

YOUTH VIOLENCE – COUNTY ATTORNEY
SCOTT TWITO

The recent youth violence spike in Yellowstone County caught our attention, but it’s been on County Attorney Scott Twito’s radar for a while. Part of the solution to youth violence is updating the Youth Court Act, a 40-year-old Montana law “enacted to prevent and reduce youth delinquency by providing immediate, consistent, and enforceable consequences for their actions,” shared Twito at the Chamber’s safety forum. An attempt to update the Youth Court Act was made during the last legislative session through HB 614,
carried out by Representative Bill Mercer, but it fell short of passage
and will need to be addressed in 2025.

Twito is also a member of the Criminal Justice Oversight Council, with representatives from all branches of government, focused on reducing recidivism by monitoring how the system functions using current data to recommend solutions. The main goal is to prioritize community-based supervision and rehabilitation
before transitioning youth into adult offenders, hopefully reducing further offenses. But even before youth become offenders, some steps can be taken to engage students and provide a safer school
environment.

JAIL EXPANSION – COUNTY
COMMISSIONER MARK MORSE

Plans are underway to construct a 96-bed, short-term
(72-hour hold) detention center with an anticipated 18-month
timeline to opening thanks to a partnership between the City of
Billings and Yellowstone County. This new holding facility will
allow an individual to be seen by an arraignment judge within
hours, resulting in 95% being bonded out or placed in a community
program instead of back on the street, largely consequence-free.

Because of inadequate jail space, our police officers jest about their “catch-and-release” policing, where they deal with an offender at the beginning of the shift and then deal with them again toward the end of the shift because the jail can’t hold them. A short-term arraignment hold ensures immediate and predictable consequences (bond payment or GPS monitoring) for offenders.

While much needed, this is only part of the solution because a comprehensive jail expansion is ultimately needed. County Commissioners are currently moving forward with identifying a firm that can study the needs and outline the requirements of a future detention facility.

SCHOOL DISTRICT 2 –
SUPERINTENDENT DR. ERWIN GARCIA

Youth violence issues are a significant concern in Billings Schools, and a recent school district safety audit identified several areas of focus. The audit informs strategies such as the School Safety Levy, which includes access control technologies that every modern
school should have, along with other resources for addressing students’ safety needs. Ultimately, prioritizing relationship building is paramount to creating a secure and nurturing educational environment.

Students facing childhood trauma, unstable home situations, and social media bullying shouldn’t also feel unsafe at school. And those who decide to drop out are far more likely to commit crimes. Acknowledging the need to re-engage dropouts and get them back into the classroom, Superintendent Garcia has hosted listening sessions with students and parents/guardians to better understand their challenges and get students back into the classroom and off the streets—a benefit to our long-term safety situation in Billings.

COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS – CITY
COUNCILPERSON JENNIFER OWEN

Like healthcare, prevention is preferable to treatment when it comes to public safety. Billings recently underwent a Sequential Intercept Mapping (SIM) exercise to identify how people move through our social services and justice system. By identifying pathways through the system, strategies were identified outlining how to prevent, intervene, and deter individuals from entering the justice system or ensure those exiting the justice system don’t re-enter it.

For example, the City of Billings invested in staff from multiple departments to attend a Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) training hosted by the Billings Chamber and Downtown Billings Alliance to build crime prevention strategies into city properties and policies. Additionally, the city is partnering with Rimrock Foundation on a Crisis Response Unit (CRU), pairing mental health experts with first responders to ensure citizens in need of services are guided into treatment.

HOW MEMBERS CAN HELP

You don’t have to be an expert to be a youth mentor. Volunteering in youth mentorship programs through organizations like Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch, Youth Dynamics, CASA, Boys & Girls Club of Yellowstone County, and Big Brothers Big Sisters can provide essential support and guidance, steering young individuals away from potential involvement in crime. If you are a business owner, you can offer employment to those reentering society from the criminal justice system, helping to break the cycle
of recidivism.

The Billings YMCA is working to fund a new Teen Center. “As a community partner, we are dedicated to providing solutions to help reduce teen crime. By providing a safe, welcoming environment and offering additional teen programs, we can help them reach their highest potential and foster productive citizens,” said CEO Kim Kaiser.

Lots of work and ongoing challenges lie ahead. But progress is being made. The Billings Police Department’s 2023 Annual Report shows declines across numerous crime categories, including
aggravated assault, non-aggravated assault, weapons offenses, drug offenses, burglaries, motor vehicle theft, and theft. The Billings Chamber is immensely grateful to our public safety personnel whose hard work is at the heart of this good news. The collaboration between city and county on a short-term hold and other justice system issues will lead to a safer Billings. And when our members engage in the prevention and intervention efforts discussed above, we’ll make even more progress. So, what are you waiting for? Let’s all be part of the solution.