NEWS RELEASE
Top Criminologist to Lead Mayor’s Roundtable on Violence
(Monday, February 19/07) - A nationally-renowned criminologist has been named to facilitate the Mayor’s Roundtable on Violence.
Professor Don Clairmont, Director of the Atlantic Institute of Criminology and Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Social Anthropology at Dalhousie University, is nationally recognized for his research and policy work on crime and social justice.
"Professor Clairmont is one of the top researchers and policy makers in Canada in this field and we are very fortunate to be able to draw on his considerable expertise," said Mayor Kelly. "His knowledge and experience in such a wide range of social justice arenas will be invaluable to the Roundtable." Professor Clairmont will work with the Mayor’s Advisory Committee of community, government and police representatives from throughout HRM who will bring a diverse range of experience and perspectives; Mayor Kelly will Chair the Advisory Committee.
Professor Clairmont’s past research focussed on race relations, economic change and social problems. He contributed to the Marshall Inquiry, drafting a section on policing issues and co-authoring a monograph on minorities and the Nova Scotia justice system. At the request of Mi’kmaq leaders, he subsequently conducted research on Mi’kmaq justice concerns.
More recently, Professor Clairmont has been engaged in research and policy on the community-based policing movement and on restorative justice. As the official evaluator of the restorative justice program in Nova Scotia, he completed an assessment of crime and restorative justice in HRM. Other recent projects involved the court system in Nova Scotia, justice developments in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and the Ipperwash Inquiry on the evolution of policing in Aboriginal communities in Canada.
Mayor Peter Kelly said today that Professor Clairmont has already begun comprehensive research on violence in HRM and other municipalities for the upcoming Roundtable to be held this spring.
Mayor Kelly noted that extensive public consultation will form the cornerstone of the Roundtable. Detailed telephone surveys will be conducted throughout HRM in March, followed by focus groups and community meetings in April and early May. Information from the research and consultation phases will be analyzed, leading up to a three-day Roundtable in late May. A final report will be delivered in the summer.
"Our time line is very ambitious, but we’re focussed on our task and committed to reaching our goals," said Mayor Kelly. "The people of HRM deserve to have answers and solutions, and I am confident the team we have gathered will uncover many of those answers and solutions.
"Violent crime and perceptions of violent crime in HRM affect our entire community-we have to work together as a community if we are going to address these serious issues effectively," Mayor Kelly concluded.
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Mayor Peter Kelly
