Sheriff Walt McNeil Promotes “Faith-Based” Solutions to Crime

Sheriff Walt McNeil Promotes “Faith-Based” Solutions to Crime

Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil recently appeared on the Morning Show with Preston Scott and discussed the Leon County Sheriff’s Office’s plans for crime reduction, including the ALLin LEON initiative. The initiative is a plan to bring community members and organizations together with the goal of reducing crime in Leon County.

“It starts with the premise that it’s going to take all of us in our community working together,” McNeil said.

Two ALLin LEON programs, Worship with Me and Back on Track, focus on helping children. McNeil said children are a significant component of the county’s crime issue.

In the Back on Track program, LCSO partners with the Department of Juvenile Justice to match children with deputies for a mentor-ship. The deputy and the child have a conversation about their lives, and they choose a night to have dinner together.

The child and their family are then invited to participate in Worship with Me, which connects them with a participating faith-based organization.

“I am a Christian, but this isn’t Christian-based. It’s faith-based,” McNeil noted.

Once connected with a family, the organization is asked to provide two opportunities for the family to attend a worship service. McNeil said about 50% of interactions continue after the families attend the two services, and the program has been successful in discouraging children from committing crimes.

Currently, seven faith-based organizations participate in Worship with Me, and McNeil hopes to increase involvement to around 100 organizations in every corner of the community.

McNeil also discussed Cease Fire, another program within ALLin LEON. Cease Fire is a collaboration between LCSO and Big Bend Crime Stoppers. McNeil said they offer a bounty to anyone who gives information about a person with an illegal weapon, and if prosecution is successful, the tipper gets $1,000.

He said he wants the community to be aware that Cease Fire aims to take guns from criminals and not from law-abiding citizens. He also emphasized gun responsibility, noting that many guns used for crimes are stolen.

“That’s why we’re again saying lock your cars,” he said. “I can’t emphasize that enough. Lock your home, lock your cars, and you will help us drive crime down in our community.”

16 Responses to "Sheriff Walt McNeil Promotes “Faith-Based” Solutions to Crime"

  1. Standard leftist procedure:
    Cultivate a public perception of “trying to do something” to address problems created by leftist mis management along with being perceived as “caring”. While at the same time lining their greedy pockets at the expense of the public.
    This leftist tactic works especially well on leftist white voters who feel guilty because of the hate the USA agenda crammed into their young impressionable heads of mush while in the leftist controlled public school system.

      1. In fact, you could make that the true Mission Statement of the Fake Newsocrat. Except that their target audience has “wised up” and no longer lines the pockets of their greedy overlords at the home office.
        Has their print circulation dropped under 10,000 yet?

        Gannett’s acquisition by New Media will become official Nov. 19. In the first week of December, there will be a round of layoffs (which is how Gannett says “Merry Christmas!” to it’s slaves.) Expect a second round in January 2020.
        The Washington ComPost:
        “Democracy Dies in Darknesss”
        The Fake Newsocrat:
        “Tallahassee’s Ghost Newspaper”

  2. Sham? Misrepresentation? I would ask if any of you have looked to volunteer or be involved in any program like this? No, it’s not perfect, but mandatory? No, it was not! Are we not paying attention that at least this Sheriff is trying to do something? Man, how quick this group of disgruntled will sling mud. I was not a fan of this Sheriff, but I have seen where he is at least trying something new and if 50% is showing a positive turn through faith-based action, well at least I count that a good start and shame on the rest of you. Good job Sheriff, stay the course.

    1. I have participated in Back on Track. It is exactly how I described it. Deputies are mandated to go, whether they want to or not. It is a one-night program with a forced narrative driven by social workers, and “dinner” is pizza in one large room with all the kids and all the deputies. After 9pm, everyone goes their separate ways. There was not a faith-based thing in any of the discussion. And yes, it most certainly is mandatory.

    2. There are thousands of people in this community who volunteer and make a difference and they do it quietly.

      They don’t hire a lobbyist, they don’t call a press conference, they don’t go on the radio to get free PR before their next election campaign cycle begins.

  3. Had they not given or funneled I should say the money to Sean Pittman perhaps the deputy and the family could eat at the Governors Club where the deputy and underprivileged children certainly deserve it.

  4. This is a misrepresentation of Back on Track. The “night chosen to have dinner” is pizza at the Sheriff’s Office during the one-night program, which has forced attendance by both kids and deputies. The interaction ends then, and there is no “mentorship.” It is a sham.

  5. Faith:
    I have faith that if I give my pal Sean a couple hundred thousand of hard working tax payers money that Sean will donate 20 – 30 thousand to my next campaign fund.
    “Technically its not against the law” say all the local conservative talking heads and well just about everybody else.
    Nothing to see here.

    1. Sean donates the money to the Sheriff’s campaign, then the sheriff turns around and pays ESP Media (Sean Pittman) for TV commercials.

      You have to give them credit for nerve. And that’s what you call The Usual Suspect Shuffle.

  6. Yet, he funnels LCSO funds to his campaign manager.

    Did Preston Scott look the other way on that issue?

    Where are the answers to how money was able to be approved (funneled) to Sean Pittman, the sheriff’s campaign manager?

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