CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In response to the city's homicide number nearing 100 this year, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said his officers are doing everything they can to decrease the alarming violence in the city, but bureaucrats and judges are failing to do their jobs.
"We can't do everybody else's jobs," the chief said Monday. "What we are doing is going after the right people and the right charges in the right manner. It's what happens in the justice system after we've done our work and that's where I think we're having a breakdown."
In the wake of Charlotte's deadliest year since 1993, Putney once again called out the justice system for failing to hold repeat violent offenders accountable.
In response to previous criticism, judicial officials invited him to be part of the conversations in recent months. He said his department's seized more guns and arrested more repeat violent offenders this year compared to last.
He said he still hasn't seen the justice system's scorecard.
"The violent repeat offenders are the ones we want to hold most accountable. That's why we're up in violent crime this year," he said.
"You have a seat at the table. You are part of the conversation. Is it not improving?" we asked.
"Conversations are cute, but the work is what matters," he said. "I need to hear from them what they're report card looks like."
The chief spent Monday also publicly pleading to city and county leaders, requesting regular funding for non-profits that have proven track records of helping kids stay in school, learn to read, and stay out of trouble.
"I'd invest the money that already exists into outcomes that I know work," he said of what he'd do if he had control of city and county funding.
The chief said consistent and constant attention is the barrier in addressing the city's long-term violence problem.
"It shouldn't be a homicide number that makes people stop and focus on it," the chief said.
Public records obtained by NBC Charlotte show the city's homicides and shootings are most prevalent in certain parts of the city.
"The numbers are incredibly high. How concerned should be about this?" we asked.
"We should be committed because of this and we should be committed investing in the right places to prevent it. Not just next year, but for the next five, 10, 15, 20 years."
Even with so much violence this year, including two cases of innocent victims at the wrong place at the wrong time randomly killed, Chief Putney said Charlotte is safe.
"I actually feel really safe, not just uptown," he said. "Overall, we're still a safe city. It could be much safer. I grant you that."
CMPD data through the first nine months of 2019 show Charlotte ranked fourth out of seven among similarly-sized cities in aggravated assault rates, fourth in robbery rates, sixth in homicide rates and seventh in rape rates per 1,000 people. The numbers compare Charlotte to the cities of Baltimore, Atlanta, Memphis, Nashville, Louisville, and Columbus.
"Should we tolerate the level of violence we're seeing?" he said. "I say emphatically absolutely not, which is why our officers are doing so much, not just in crime-fighting, but in community engagement, so that we can rally the forces that be to join us in the work to prevent it long-term."
The chief said he's encouraged by recent news NBC Charlotte first reported about the Epicentre changing from an entertainment hub to retail and office space. He said he's met with new management and is partnering in trying to reduce crime there in the meantime.