ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — St. Louis County is reviving a decades-old commission focused on combatting crime.
County Executive Sam Page announced Wednesday the relaunch of the St. Louis County Crime Commission, formerly known as the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.
The council has been in existence since 1976. Page said the group hadn't met in 40 years until he revived it from dormancy in 2019, but it was put on pause again during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The commission's main directive is for county leaders to work with criminal justice agencies and residents to develop a countywide plan to improve law enforcement and criminal justice in the county.
"To tackle all the challenges, it's important to bring the key players in the criminal justice system together in a more formal way," Page said at a Wednesday morning briefing.
The original 1976 ordinance outlines the commission as consisting of the St. Louis County executive, county council chair, police chief, prosecuting attorney, presiding judge, director of the criminal justice center, and two citizens appointed as municipal elected officials.
"With this crime commission, we'll be able to amplify the priorities of St. Louis County," Page said, "and those include reducing crime and enhancing our criminal justice system and making sure we have something in place that treats everyone fairly."
The commission will begin holding monthly meetings starting Feb. 23.