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2019 data.52 In particular, the estimated number of aggravated assault offenses rose 12 percent, <br />while murder and manslaughter increased 30 percent from 2019 to 2020.53 The proportion of <br />homicides committed with firearms rose from 73 percent in 2019 to 76 percent in 2020.54 <br />Exposure to violence can create serious short-term and long-term harmful effects to health and <br />development, and repeated exposure to violence may be connected to negative health <br />outcomes.55 Addressing community violence as a public health issue may help prevent and even <br />reduce additional harm to individuals, households, and communities.56 <br />Many communities are using SLFRF funds to invest in holistic approaches in violence <br />prevention that are rooted in targeted outreach and addressing root causes. For example, the City <br />of St. Louis is planning to invest in expanding a "community responder" model designed to <br />provide clinical help and to divert non-violent calls away from the police department. <br />Additionally, the city will expand access to mental health services, allowing residents to seek <br />support at city recreation centers, libraries, and other public spaces.57 Similarly, Los Angeles <br />County will further invest in its "Care First, Jails Last" program which seeks to replace "arrest <br />and incarceration" responses with health interventions.58 <br />While the pandemic affected communities across the country, it disproportionately <br />impacted some demographic groups and exacerbated health inequities along racial, ethnic, and <br />52 Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI Releases 2020 Crime Statistics (September 27, 2021) <br />https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2020-crime-statistics. <br />53 Id. <br />54 Id. <br />55 The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Community Gun Violence, https://efsgv.org/learn/type-of-gun- <br />violence/community-gun-violence/ (last visited November 9, 2021). <br />56 Giffords Law Center, Healing Communities in Crisis: Lifesaving Solutions to the Urban Gun Violence Epidemic <br />(March 2016), https://giffords.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01 /Healing-Communities-in-Crisis.pdf. <br />57 St. Louis, MO Recovery Plan, https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/recovery/covid-19/arpa/plan/. <br />58 Los Angeles County, CA Recovery Plan, http://file.lacounty.gov/SDSlnter/bos/supdocs/160391.pdf. <br />51 <br />