Belleville Police enter partnership to help curb violence. Here’s what to know

The Belleville City Council voted Monday night to approve a memorandum of understanding between the police department and Metro East Organizing Coalition, a faith-based nonprofit focused on community violence intervention.

The six-page agreement formalizes how police will share information with the group to help prevent retaliatory violence and neighborhood disputes.

FULL STORY: Belleville police partner with faith-based group to curb violence

Here are key takeaways:

• How it works: Police will notify the coalition of homicides, shootings with injuries, credible retaliation risks and major disturbances — within four to 12 hours if possible — so the group can mobilize outreach and mediation.

• What the coalition does: Metro East Organizing Coalition sends trained staff and volunteers into at-risk neighborhoods to offer counseling, social services and conflict resolution. The group has five staff members and dozens of volunteers.

• A first for Belleville: Acting Police Chief Mark Heffernan said this is the first formal agreement of this nature for the department. “Anything we can do to partner with local organizations that have a shared goal of reducing crime in the city, we’re 100% behind the effort,” he said.

• Crime is declining: Crime was down about 9% in Belleville in the first three months of this year compared with 2025, according to a report from the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System.

• Clear boundaries: Police will not share suspect identities, confidential informant information, surveillance materials or victim identifying information without consent. The memorandum emphasizes the coalition’s independence from law enforcement.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.