Jamestown City Council voting session (May 22, 2023)
Republican City Council members are refuting public safety information shared by Mayor Eddie Sundquist at the announcement of the “Safer Jamestown N.O.W.” press conference.
Council member at large Kim Ecklund, who is running against Sundquist in the November election, as well as Council President Tony Dolce, Council members Jeff Russell, Brent Sheldon, Randy Daversa, Andrew Faulkner, and Bill Reynolds issued a rebuttal statement saying the statistics Sundquist shared are misleading.
In a statement sent to the media, Council members said that Sundquist’s statement that gun related offenses have decreased by 45% and confirmed shootings have decreased by 4 incidents this year is false. Citing data obtained from the Jamestown Police Department Annual Reports for the last three years, Council members said the City of Jamestown had the highest confirmed number of shootings with a total of 24 in 2022. They added that there has been a 118% increase in shootings that resulted in death or injury since January 2020.
Republican council members also took issue with Sundquist’s statement that domestic violence cases have decreased by 9%. They said Jamestown Police Department data shows that domestic violence cases have risen by 12% since the beginning of 2020.
Additionally, they said, violent crime has increased 28%.
The information shared by Sundquist at the press conference was a reflection of data from between January 1 and May 31, 2023.
Republicans also criticized Sundquist for lack of transparency when he declined to share information about the “Safer Jamestown N.O.W” initiative with council members prior to the press conference despite repeated requests.
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