CU Fresh Start Updates

First a reminder of what CU Fresh Start is from their web page:

CU Fresh Start is a community-led, focused effort to deter gun violence. This approach gives individuals with a history of violent, gun-related behaviors a choice to put down the gun and move in a different direction. If they choose to stop shooting, offenders will receive help to access community services and resources. If they continue to engage in gun violence, they will face swift and certain consequences.

WILL had a recent detailed article explaining the program and its evolution here. Excerpt:

In the past, a person had to already be on probation or parole for gun-related crimes to be eligible for CU Fresh Start and receive the individualized support to program provides to find housing, jobs, mental health or addiction treatment, or anything else a person needs to get their life back on track.

Now, anyone 18 and older is eligible to apply, or refer someone else, as long as they don’t have pending criminal charges.

Champaign Community Relations Specialist Mary Catherine Roberson said the goal is “to be able to get them support services they need before they have to enter the criminal justice system.”

Forms will eventually be available online for agencies or individuals interested in referring someone to the program.

Full article here. Cheat Sheet posts with previous updates and news on CU Fresh Start are available here. WILL also had coverage of the most recent "call in" with details on how they currently work. Excerpt:

CU Fresh Start held its sixth “Call-In” Thursday, attempting to set a new path for young men in trouble for gun-related offenses in Champaign-Urbana. At the same time, local officials say they’re looking at ways to expand the program’s reach.

Modeled after programs used in Boston, Minneapolis, Peoria and other cities, CU Fresh Start takes an interventionist approach, warning young people in trouble of the dangers and legal consequences of gun violence, while offering help with education, job-training and cutting through legal red tape.

Thursday’s Call-In, like previous ones held over the past three years, took place in Champaign. Nineteen young men, a larger number than in previous Call-Ins, came in for the event. Their names were not released, and the invited audience, including local officials and reporters, were told not to disclose the names of anyone they might recognize. The audience was present only for the first part of the program, which featured speakers ranging from local prosecutors to mothers who had lost sons to gun violence. After that, the men went to another room for one-on-one discussions, after which they would decide whether to continue with the program.

That full article here.