Shawnee County DA Mike Kagay and Topeka JUMP at odds over gang violence prevention program

Representatives from more than 30 Topeka-area congregations are alleging that Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay has given up on efforts to prevent violent crime and shootings among young adults, focusing instead on a program geared mostly toward children.

But Kagay disputes those allegations, saying the program has to focus on crime prevention and that his office cannot ethically work with individuals who are actively engaged in violence.

At a news conference Monday morning, representatives from the Topeka Justice Unity & Ministry Project called on Kagay to both clarify comments he made last week on his office’s Strategies Against Violence Everywhere initiative and to work with the organization to implement broader, group violence intervention strategies.

Speaking on SAVE’s focus last week, Kagay had said he much prefers to focus preliminary violence prevention efforts on youths than on reactive programs for young adults who are already actively engaged in violent crime.

“Our young adults are dying,” said JUMP member and New Life Baptist Church Pastor Clarence Newton. “I'm disappointed that the DA is arguing that it's a good idea to write off 20-somethings, in his words, and that only school-age children are worth reaching out to.”

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Topeka JUMP argues SAVE violence prevention program isn't what was promised

Launched earlier this year after two years of planning, the SAVE initiative focuses on reducing community violence by creating support teams around individuals deemed at risk of falling into violent lifestyles.

With the help of a $300,000 grant from the Topeka Community Foundation, a program coordinator in the district attorney’s office helps pull together teams of people and mentors who can guide those at-risk individuals to make better decisions.

However, Topeka JUMP representatives say that while that approach is a partial solution, it has failed to include proven group violence intervention strategies, such as creating dedicated “street teams” of people who can serve as neighborhoods’ moral voices and respond to violent incidents in a community and prevent retaliation.

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JUMP member and Southern Hills Mennonite Church Pastor Gabe Pennington said SAVE is not what was presented to the organization years ago as part of Kagay’s commitment to reduce community violence. Further, group representatives said they were blindsided when Kagay unilaterally announced the creation of SAVE without the organization's input.

“There are two problems with the DA's action,” Pennington said. “No. 1 — we do not support a public official using money that was allocated for GVI and using it for something else. That is a misappropriation of funds and is not acceptable.

“No. 2 — SAVE was launched as a case management and mentorship program for youth, when what the community actually asked for was a strategy that directly engages groups or gang members of all ages involved in shootings as they occur to deliver intervention and deter retaliation.”

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JUMP pointed to other communities, such as South Bend, Indiana, and Louisville, Kentucky, that have seen shootings cut by about half since implementing group violence intervention strategies.

“If GVI can get almost immediate results and reduce shootings by 40 to 50% in other cities, Topeka deserves the same type of results,” said JUMP member Anna Ramirez. “Our adults are no more difficult than anywhere else in the country, and if GVI can happen elsewhere, it can happen in Topeka.”

Mike Kagay says JUMP is well-intentioned but misguided in violence prevention criticism

Kagay, in a written statement to The Capital-Journal, disputed JUMP’s allegations.

He said that contrary to JUMP’s claims, SAVE will work with individuals of any age. However, all but one of the program’s referrals to date have been more minors, most of whom are referred by schools.

“We rely on community partners to identify individuals who can benefit from services and make the referral,” Kagay wrote. “SAVE has explained this repeatedly to representatives from Topeka Jump. They have yet to make a single referral to the program. If they are aware of anyone who would benefit, they should make the referral.”

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Further, Kagay emphasized that he sees SAVE as a crime prevention program, and not one that will support individuals who are already actively engaged in violence.

The district attorney’s office, Kagay said, will continue to prosecute those individuals.

“Topeka JUMP has consistently failed to understand my ethical responsibilities as a prosecutor, and the impact that has on the direction of SAVE,” Kagay said. “If Topeka JUMP wants to launch their own violence prevention program, I would encourage them to do so, and even offer my support.”

With Mike Kagay and JUMP deadlocked, what is next for violence prevention efforts in Topeka?

Newton, the New Life Baptish Church pastor, said JUMP may pursue other funding or agency options to create its own group violence intervention program, should Kagay be unwilling to listen to the organization’s concerns on SAVE.

It’s a proven strategy that has the potential to make a significant difference in Topeka as young adults and children continue to die in gang and group violence, said Gethsemane Worship Center Pastor Ray Berry.

“We believe the public needs to know that there are proven strategies that work,” Berry said. “As a community, we're tired of our public officials coming into our communities and telling us what we need. We live in those communities, we know what we need and we know that GVI is something that will work, so we’ll continue to fight for it.”

Kagay said his office continues to build the still-nascent SAVE program, and that expansion in the future could include financial support for “street teams” made up of individuals recommended by JUMP, once funding opportunities are found.

But he said JUMP has been unwilling or unable to collaborate with the existing SAVE program, failing to refer mentors or provide transportation or basic human necessities to support the program when asked.

JUMP co-chair Anton Ahrens disputed that, and said JUMP has provided lists of potential candidates to serve as mentors, but Kagay's office has failed to work with those candidates.

"Our main thing is that he agreed five years ago to implement GVI," Ahrens said. "He has not done that, and he’s spent community mone y— a lot of it — and not implemented that program with fidelity."

Kagay, for his part, said the group’s size and disorganization has led to more than 50 meetings with his office, and JUMP has shown “little to no understanding of the background history or the scope of the program.”

Ahrens said the group has indeed had many meetings with Kagay, but the district attorney has also been unhelpful or uncommunicative regarding SAVE or any further attempts to implement group violence intervention strategies.

"Is that how you treat a community partner?" Ahrens said.

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'They are doing more harm than good on this issue'

The only hurdle to expanding crime prevention efforts, Kagay said, has been JUMP.

“They continue to mislead and confuse community members, some of whom are currently benefiting from the services that SAVE provides them and their families,” Kagay wrote. “I am sure that Topeka Jump has the best of intentions, but they are doing more harm than good on this issue.

"We all want the same thing, which is for the violence to stop in our community. I will pray for them, and I hope they will do the same for me.”

A previous version of this story misattributed a quote to Pastor Clarence Newton.

Rafael Garcia is an education reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at rgarcia@cjonline.com or by phone at ‪785-289-5325. Follow him on Twitter at @byRafaelGarcia.