~ New programs result in lower violent crime rates ~

A report published last week by a national police research group highlights Minneapolis as a city where aggressive new crime-fighting programs are getting results. The study finds that a two-year surge in violent crime, which many American cities experienced over 2005 and 2006, has slowed significantly in the first half of this year. Minneapolis figures prominently in the 59-page report, titled “Violent Crime in America: A Tale of Two Cities,” produced by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF).