Mayor Lee talks strategies to stop recent violence in Bayview

From KTVU.com and wires:

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee Tuesday announced a series of actions the city is taking to combat a recent uptick in violence in the Bayview District. 

There have been at least six people injured in separate shootings in the southeast part of the city since mid-May, two of whom have died, according to police. 

Supervisor Malia Cohen, whose district covers that area, asked Lee a question about the violence during the mayor's voter-mandated monthly visit to the Board of Supervisors this afternoon. 

Cohen said some of the violence is gang-related, while some is merely because of the summer season. 

"School is out, there's high unemployment, there's nice weather," she said. "There are a lot of people with extra time on their hands." 

Lee said he shared Cohen's concerns over the string of recent shootings.
"It's a tragedy when we lose lives to senseless violence," he said. 

He said city agencies and community groups have partnered on several strategies to improve the neighborhood, including launching a summer jobs program and organizing activities such as a midnight basketball league. 

Lee said the Police Department is also adding additional officers in the area, including the police academy's entire 12-person graduating class of lateral officers -- those coming from other departments -- who will spend all 14 weeks of their field training in the Bayview when they graduate in two weeks. 

"Violence prevention only works when we have services and opportunities available to our young people," he said.