Journal Sentinel Editorial Board Published 5:57 a.m. CT Oct. 11, 2019 | Updated 8:58 a.m. CT Oct. 11, 2019

Police tape hangs at the scene where a woman was shot and killed on Aug. 25 near Moody Park in the 2300 block of WestBurleighStreet in Milwaukee.(Photo: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

For years, Oakland, California, had a well-deserved reputation as one of Americas most dangerous cities. It was routinely among the top 10 most violent cities in the nation.

But over a five-year period,Oakland cut homicides by 46% and nonfatal shootings in half, a dramatic turnaround that has received national attention.

Oakland showed that even a city with a long history of violence, difficult police-community relationsand turbulent politics could reduce gun violence quickly through smart partnerships between law enforcement and social service agencies using data to get a clear picture of what was happening.

RELATED: Oakland cut its shootings in half and saw a 46% drop in homicides.

RELATED: Read the full Journal Sentinel"Cycles of Violence" investigation

Milwaukee has adopted some of the same violence reduction tactics as Oakland but the city needs to do even more, and it needs to ensure that there is a stable, long-term funding stream for this vital work.

Oakland uses a data-driven approach to identify people at the highest risk of gun violence. Weekly shooting reviews help law enforcement understand why a shooting happened, identify the participants and figure out how to follow up.

Police and prosecutors meet with the people who are at the highest risk of being harmed during a call-in. Its done in collaboration with Oakland Unite, a nonprofit that coordinates violence prevention in the city.

The message to potential victims is this: We know youre at high risk of being shot. We want you to stay healthy and out of prison. We have services and opportunities for you.

Oakland Unite might offer intensive life-coaching, for example, or priority access to housing and employment assistance. The city also has an emergency protection program for people who are in imminent danger.

The results speak for themselves. From 2012 to 2017, homicides fell from 126 to 72and shootings were down from 556 to 277. While there is likely more than one reason for the drop in violence, Oaklands proactive violence reduction efforts increasingly are seen as a major factor.

The work is funded by Measure Z, which voters approved in 2014. The real estate/parking tax provides about $25 million a year to fund violence prevention, additional police officers and fire services. About $12 million a year is used to fund police; another $8 million goes for violence prevention.

The measure requires Oakland to maintain a minimum number of sworn police officers. If that doesnt happen, the city is prohibited from levying the taxes. And thats a key point: Oakland taxpayers knew exactly what they were getting for their money and had a built-in guarantee that they would get it for the life of the tax or the tax would go away.

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In Milwaukee, each week police, prosecutors, probation officers, federal agencies and others examine every shooting, looking for patterns. Their findings are shared with nonprofits that can provide supports, such as food, medical insuranceand housing. The reviews are funded out of the Police Departments existing budget. While police have done call-ins in the past, they are not doing them currently.

Milwaukees Office of Violence Prevention, meantime, operates 414LIFE, which began in November 2018. This public health approach, which draws on the experience in Oakland and other cities, is focused on interrupting conflict before people are killed.

The 414LIFE team has five outreach workers, four violence interrupters, a hospital responder and a program director. They mediate arguments, provide mentoring and connect shooting victims to basic resources such as medical insurance, foodand housing.

Since it began last November, 414LIFE has intervened in dozens of disputes and helped dozens of shooting victims. The $500,000 program was funded by the city and private donors its first year and will likely attract enough funding to continue for a second.

But this worthy program needs a clear, long-term funding source or it could fade away.

A new county sales tax championed by Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and other area leaders last month could be that funding stream.

The boost in the tax from 0.5% to 1.5% could bring in an estimated $160 million that would be shared across the county. The Republican-controlled state Legislature must first approve of putting a binding referendum before county taxpayers.

Violence takes a heavy toll on individuals and on a community. There are tragic consequences for victims but also an enormous cost in dollars. The average cost of a shooting, from treating the victim to holding the assailant accountable, is roughly $1 million, according to the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform. A 2015 Journal Sentinel analysis found that oneshooting in Milwaukee cost at least $700,557. Taxpayers bear a big share of these costs.

A case study of Oaklands experience, published in April by the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, made a series of recommendations for communities like Milwaukee that are trying to reduce violence.

City leaders must remain actively involved to ensure the long-term viability of these programs, the study recommended, and should make the case that investment in effective violence reduction programs will pay for themselves many times over.

Milwaukee should stick with 414LIFE and the Milwaukee Police Department must continue its practice, adoptedunder Chief Alfonso Morales, of treating every shooting as if it were a homicide. We need to find a sustainable way to pay for programs like these that reduce violence and savelives.

Barrett, County Executive Chris Abele and other community leaders should tell taxpayers exactly how they would use the new sales tax revenue with a portion of the funds earmarked forviolence reduction and policing programs with built-in accountability, like those approved by Oakland voters.

Then the Legislature should give local leaders permission to make their pitch for a safer city and county to the citizens through a referendum.

Thats democracy in action and gives the public a chance to directly back programs that will improve lives.

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Editorial: Milwaukee's violence prevention program needs the steady support that a new sales tax could offer - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel