Miami-Dade County Commissioners Approve 'Peace And Prosperity Plan'

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - Miami-Dade County has a new plan to fight gun violence, after a very violent few weeks, with multiple mass shootings which left behind devastated families.

On Tuesday county commissioners passed Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's "Peace and Prosperity Plan." It's a long-term plan to fight crime at its roots, through community programs.

Phase one of the plan is already in effect, it focuses on the here and now with "Operation Summer Heat."

"In just the first 3 days of this operation last weekend, 146 total arrests were made and 61 firearms were taken off the street just because of this increased enforcement," said the mayor.

"What you're seeing right now is a tsunami reaction from the COVID, the reopening. Our youth coming out with a lot of angst, opening up like the roaring 20's," said Freddy Ramirez, Miami-Dade Police Director.

Ramirez told the commission, "We're seeing crime like we've never seen before." He noted last weekend's mass shooting in Kendall as an example.

"The most ridiculous thing that typically would be handled in a schoolyard... handled by maybe a fistfight or a shoving to the locker, no these issues that came over social media was resolved with assault rifles, handguns, a coordinated attack," said Ramirez.

Ramirez believes getting to kids before they learn bad behavior like, in the Peace and Prosperity Plan, some of these problems can be avoided.

"We have to get to our youth, so they don't make those stupid decisions when someone shows them a phone and they go, "What?! Oh, no!" Think about that.

The county is pushing to get two and a half million dollars for police overtime and to add dozens of officers as they push forward with increased patrols.

The plan also puts code officers in the field with police to shut down illegal businesses. It also calls for installing more than 200 license plate readers and setting up surveillance cameras at businesses that agree to it.

The mayor said this plan can't wait.

"These tragic events over the last several days, especially and this past weekend are reinforcing that we must take immediate action to make our neighborhoods safer especially as we head into the summer months," said the mayor.