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Groups push to revive Charlotte homicide task force after 66th slaying

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte’s latest homicide -- the 66th of 2017 -- was the tipping point for many organizations.

[RELATED: CMPD identifies suspect, victim in Charlotte's 66th homicide of 2017]

Multiple groups are requesting that the city re-establish a homicide task force to battle the skyrocketing crime.

The last time Charlotte saw the homicide rate spike like this, the city pulled together a group of outsiders to look at the problem.

That homicide task force was assembled in 2005 and was credited with helping to turn things around.

Some community activists believe it's time to bring the task force back.

That request was sent in an email to Charlotte city leaders Thursday morning.

Safe Coalition NC, Action NC and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg NAACP believe recommendations from a task force established in 2005 could be used now.

Community safety chairwoman and City Councilwoman Julie Eiselt requested a copy of that report and her first step is to go through it. She said she will then connect with the Police Department to find out what it's already using, and what it may need to.

Community activist Robert Dawkins sent that email on behalf of several organizations.

“If the task force itself can help reduce this homicide rate, we believe that there needs to be one,” Dawkins said. "I think we're gonna need a task force that comes up with long-range solutions that can be adjusted over time someday, to look at homicide when it rises, work with the city, the community and experts in homicide prevention."

Channel 9 obtained a copy of the original report with recommendations from 2005. That's after 85 people were killed, the highest total in 10 years.

At that time, the key causes were arguments, domestic violence and robberies. Topping the 13 recommendations was increasing community awareness.

There were a total of 68 homicides last year, and this year alone we've already had 66.

Vivian Lord, the former head of UNC Charlotte’s criminal justice department, believes that murder is one of the most difficult crimes to prevent.

"It's rare that you're going to have a homicide that has any sort of thought behind it,” Lord said.

After years of declines, crime spiked this year, but Lord doesn't believe it’s because of how officers are policing, compared to years past.

"If you track it, it's not as if Chief (Kerr) Putney came in and became chief and suddenly you had this spike,” Lord said. “You have to put it in the context of what's happening nationwide."

CMPD doesn’t have an official position on the task force since it will be up to the city decide whether to proceed.

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