Attorney General Miyares releases ‘Operation Ceasefire’ report, murders down 17% in Virginia

NORFOLK, Va. (WFXR) — Attorney General Jason Miyares has announced new trends and reductions in crime across Virginia’s highest crime cities targeted by “Operation Ceasefire.”

During a press conference in Norfolk on March 20, Attorney General Jason Miyares was joined by House Speaker Don Scott and several police department leaders to share details on the operation’s impact.

According to the attorney’s office, the initiative is proven to address gun violence through prosecution and prevention, promoting group violence prevention, and working with local communities to reduce and prevent violent crime. The goal of “Operation Ceasefire” was to decrease homicides across Virginia by 10%.

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“We know that local law enforcement can’t work without community engagement. The solutions come from within the community, they don’t come from outside, they come from within” said Scott, during the meeting.

The initiative focuses on 13 cities including Roanoke, Lynchburg, Danville, and Martinsville.

The Attorney’s Office says after a year of “Operation Ceasefire” being in place, the state has seen a 17% drop in murders, a 10% decrease in rapes, and a 3% decrease in robberies. So far, the initiative has prosecuted 155 cases, leading to 106 convictions with 41 pending trial.

“Over 10,000 illegal guns have been recovered in our 13 ‘Ceasefire Cities.’ These are guns that are off our streets and out of our communities,” said AG Miyares. “In our 2023 our Ceasefire Cities that we targeted saw 225 less violent crime in that year.”

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Additionally, in 2023, 12 of 13 “Ceasefire Cities” saw a crime reduction, and 9 had an overall decrease in violent crime. According to the release, the City of Hopewell has the largest drop in violent crime with 33%.

Taking a deeper dive into the violent crime statistics of “Ceasefire Cities” in our area, the report shows:

• Violent crimes in Roanoke down by 5%

• Violent crimes in Lynchburg down by 8%

• Violent crimes in Danville up by 13%

• Violent crimes in Martinsville down by 6%

In Star City, murder and non-negligent manslaughter increased by 56% and Danville was down by 25%.

“Young men particularly get a sense of longing often times from being part of it either  community, either after-school activities after school sports. And a lot of them got to the gang lifestyle, as this gentleman shared with me, almost by accident. It was a sense of belonging a sense of connection. We want to make sure they get that connection in the right areas,” said Miyares.

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