I have been consistently accurate in my assessment of public safety in Indianapolis over the past 15 years. This weekend serves as a clear example of how politicized the issue has become. When I first joined the Indy Ten Point Coalition in 1999, there was a unified effort among all stakeholders: the mayor's office, the governor, IMPD, the prosecutor, the city-county council, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District, judges, probation officers, the sheriff, state police, the FBI, the DEA, the ATF, clergy, community leaders, neighborhoods, the business community, the media, and faith-based anti-violence groups. We all collaborated to make Indianapolis safer. Back then, we found solutions to public safety issues and worked together to implement them. The next time a violent crime occurs in downtown Indianapolis—and there will be another incident—it is likely to draw much more attention and create further division. This saddens me.