Gov. Josh Stein led a roundtable discussion Wednesday in Winston-Salem with local law enforcement leaders to discuss crime.
Participants included police chiefs from Winston-Salem, Greensboro, High Point and Kernersville, as well as the sheriffs of Forsyth and Guilford counties.
Among the key concerns raised were the rising costs of crime-fighting technologies.
Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough said one way agencies are managing those expenses is by making better use of the information they collect.
For example, the county’s real-time crime center uses video feeds to track major incidents, which are now being shared with other local agencies.
“So we have entered into an agreement where we are sharing cameras so I can see what's happening in Greensboro, they can see what's happening in Winston, Kernersville,” Kimbrough said. “That helps us by sharing information, sharing data and sharing the intel.”
Others at the roundtable raised concerns about the lack of resources for mental health and homelessness.
Stein said Medicaid cuts could make behavioral health issues worse for law enforcement.
“The legislature's failure to fully fund Medicaid means that the state cannot pay providers of mental health care services what they deserve,” he said. “Which means that fewer providers will do this work, which means that there will be more people who can't get access to service. It's a terrible step backwards.”
Stein said if the legislature sends him a revised Medicaid funding bill next week, he will sign it.
