Leaders in Fort Wayne Address Recent Violence
FORT WAYNE, Ind.–There have been close to 20 homicides in Fort Wayne so far in 2025 with many of those incidents involving kids or young adults. Fort Wayne Mayor Sharon Tucker and other leaders in the city addressed the concerns about violence Wednesday night.
Tucker said they don’t have money in the budget to spend on programs that are not related to the government, but they are trying to get creative to find solutions.
“The city is going to work with our not-for-profits like we’ve done, we’re looking at ways to support our nonprofits, and we’re looking for different opportunities that could exist for us through pilot programs that we’ll be making some announcements on shortly,” said Tucker.
Tucker says police officers are patrolling the same neighborhoods so that it builds familiarity with all of the people who live in those neighborhoods.
Phillip Gibson directs a program called Building Kings. It focuses on giving kids mentors to look up to.
“Try and find a way to bring officers into the community. Let the community know, ‘Hey, this guy is a human just like me.’ So, finding ways to allow some of these officers to be more accessible outside of their job could be important. You can’t help these young men without helping their families, and the more we help the families, the more we help the community,” says Gibson.
Tucker says more announcements about youth programs could be coming in the near future.
