On Wednesday, August 3, there was a huge shakeup in Milwaukee City Hall. Mayor Cavalier Johnson fired the city’s head of the Office of Violence Prevention, which led to a number of other personnel changes.
Arnitta Holliman was only in her job for a little over a year and a half after being placed there by the previous mayor, Tom Barrett.
Now that crime rates have increased throughout this year, the city is searching for a replacement.
During Holliman’s tenure, the office had been plagued by rising crime rates as well as doubts over the office’s finances and performance. This was despite the fact that Holliman had redoubled his attempts to avoid violence.
Holliman was presented to the gathering as the director of OVP during an event that took place on Wednesday morning. She then remarked, “On behalf of the Office of Violence Prevention, it is a joy to be here.”
It was going to be her last time appearing in public in her director role. A few hours later, the administration of Mayor Johnson relieved her of her responsibilities, stating in a letter that the city would increase “the office’s response to evolving demands and expectations in public safety.”
Wednesday, the Alderman for District 10, Mike Murphy, stated that “My guess is that [Johnson] wants to be more focused on how he uses the resources. I believe that he wants to make sure that they are targeted, and he also wants to make sure that they are analyzing to see whether they are effective.”
On Wednesday, Mayor Johnson was not available for an interview or to comment on anything.
Just a few weeks ago, several councilmembers, including Murphy, questioned the efficiency of Holliman’s office, which led to her dismissal just a few weeks later.
At that time, Holliman stated that “OVP is continually questioned on our work, and the importance of our job, the worthiness of our work in many ways, and if we should be financed or not.”
At the meeting of the committee in June, Murphy called for evidence that the efforts were productive. He remarked, “In the end, the question that really matters to us is, do any of these initiatives actually work? If they’re successful, that’s wonderful. But if they aren’t producing results, then we shouldn’t keep pouring money into them.”
The number of homicides and carjackings that have occurred so far this year is significantly more than it was at the same point in time last year, but the number of gunshots that did not result in a fatality has remained essentially unchanged.
Holliman has, for a long time, listed a number of societal issues as having an impact on the level of crime in Milwaukee, including poverty, jobs, and education. In the month of May, she stated, “When we see videos of shootings, all of these other factors contribute to the final product that we see. It’s more complicated than just one person shooting another person, which indicates that the OVP is failing to do their job.”
OVP was recently successful in securing ARPA funds totaling millions of dollars, including $8.4 million from the state and $3 million from the city.
In the news release issued by the city, it was said that “we want those new resources properly deployed to keep Milwaukee safer.” However, the particular reason for the city’s decision to let Holliman leave was not provided.
Murphy added, “Because those money have not been used up as of yet, they will still be distributed within this calendar year. As a result, I believe it is very likely that the mayor will leave his mark on that.”
On Wednesday, Arnita Holliman did not answer any of the calls or messages that were left for her.
According to the news release, the city has already begun conversations to replace the post, and an appointment is scheduled to be made in the upcoming weeks.
