Mayor Paul Young discusses first homicide of the year, first steps as mayor at inaugural gala

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - As we rang in the new year on Monday, Paul Young was inaugurated as the new mayor of the City of Memphis.

He finished the night at a Mayor’s Gala to celebrate, but our new mayor did not lose sight of his plans to hit the ground running.

“We need an urgency around the issues that we are dealing with in our community, and I want to help bring that urgency to the table,” Young said.

2023 ended with 397 homicides, according to the Memphis Police Department, and not even an entire 24 hours into 2024, Memphis recorded its first homicide of the year.

“The narrative that is going on right now, it has a negative impact on who we are, on our economy, our national reputation,” he said. “So, we want to make sure we show the world how strong this city is.”

Poverty, blight, and education are some underlying issues of crime the Young administration is focusing on.

Young says it’s going to take collaboration from the city council, community members, and other leaders to stop crime and intervene in the lives of youth committing crimes.

“We need to have all of the different players at the table at the same time,” he said. “We certainly want to make sure MPD is strong and that they are doing all the things that they need to do, but we need to understand that public safety is not just the law enforcement side of things, it’s also the prevention and intervention activities.”

Young said in the first 90 days, the city will see an intense focus on repeat offenders, more law enforcement on roads and highways, and collaboration with the federal district attorney’s office.

Mayor Young also noted the use of data will help his administration identify who is committing crimes which will give a better picture of what the city is dealing with.

“...Use data to identify who is headed down the wrong path, who is connected to the people that have been victims of violence. Who is connected to the people who have perpetrated the violence,” he said.

Young says as he begins his position, he will need to get a better look at what data is already available and how to create a platform that will show the data collected.

The first Memphis City Council meeting with Young as mayor will be January 9.

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