Stop the Violence ... Later

Porter agrees that the budget is a concern.

"I'm not knocking the program, but a whole lot of these funds are going on the administrative side," he says. "If you got three groups out there handling mediation, how do you do this if one group is doing all the mediation and getting paid and another isn't doing anything and is getting paid? How are you going to get the funds where they need to be?"

Perhaps the biggest problem is timing. The task force might be ready to get the program rolling this year, but not until after it's needed most. Summer is the worst time of year for shootings. The mediation won't start until late August at the earliest.

The task force has yet to formally identify mediators, write a policy and procedures manual, send mediators through training or work out cooperation procedures with hospitals and schools that might want to call in problems, says Tracie McClendon, a task force member who is the justice program coordinator with the city manager's office. "We'll be focusing a lot on public education," she says.

Meanwhile, as of press time, the city is up to 31 homicides this year.