On July 8, Attorney General William Barr announced Trump's administration has moved to deploy federal law enforcement to the city of Kansas, Missouri. The move is part of a national endeavor called "Operation Legend" which aims to assist in controlling the recent surge of violence that has ravaged the country.
Operation Legend
Officials named the program after LeGend Taliferro, who was a 4-year-old boy who lost his life when an assailant shot him as he slept inside his home in Kansas on June 29.
According to The Epoch Times, Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, stated on July 8 the program was a reply to a letter Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas sent to Missouri Gov. Mike Parson. Mayor Lucas previously announced the city was at a critical point due to all the violence happening in the area.
The Justice Department said that the program was created after Trump announced his commitment to supporting and assisting cities that have been ravaged by the recent rush of violence.
As of July 8, Kansas City had 99 reports of homicides this year, and if numbers continue, the region would likely see a recorded total that goes beyond last year's 150 cases.
In the coming weeks, Barr will order at least 100 federal agents gathered from different agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to be deployed to the region of Kansas to assist and support local law enforcement agencies and officials amid the rampant crime and violence.
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White House Press Secretary McEnany added the troops would be arriving in the area within the next ten days.
The 4-year-old Taliferro was suffering from a very rare form of congenital heart disease medical experts called Tetralogy of Fallot, as reported by Fox4kc. Barr called the incident with the young boy a horrific event and served as a reminder that violence threatens everyone if left uncontrolled.
In a statement, McEnany noted the government was working on ensuring the horrible shooting never took place again. The press secretary said they would be allocating all available resources to keep young children like Taliferro safe and out of harm's way.
Limited assistance efforts
On Wednesday, Lucas posted on Twitter where he announced the plans of the Department of Justice to deploy federal investigators to the city in an attempt to look into unsolved homicide cases and assist in non-fatal shooting investigations.
The Kansas mayor noted the federal support would not be used for regular policing or patrol activities and will be limited to unsolved murders and shootings. Lucas also stated Barr has spoken with the Taliferro family who expressed their support of the investigation.
The mayor noted the investigation efforts should only be one out of many attempts to support and aid the public amid the rising number of crimes and should include mental health treatment and restorative justice, as reported by ThePitchkc.
Lucas announced he previously contacted Governor Parson and will work on pursuing additional social services and other tools to reduce crime and violence in the future. The Kansas City mayor previously participated in the Black Lives Matter movement and committed to reorganizing police agencies.
