Last year while campaigning across Virginia, I repeatedly heard the same concerns about public safety and the rise in crime. I saw communities gripped in fear, officers leaving police forces in droves due to lack of support, and too many victims to count. From Abingdon to the suburbs of Fairfax County, the city of Richmond, the shores of Virginia Beach, and the hills of the Shenandoah Valley, Virginians everywhere were concerned about the rise of violent crime in the commonwealth.

And rightfully so: The Council on Criminal Justice found that murders increased in every major city nationwide in 2021. Virginia’s murder rate is the highest it’s been since the turn of the century, and many of our communities have seen an uptick in gun and gang violence.