L.A. Anti-Gang Czar Fueled by Prayer
"Carr has thrown himself into his work with a gentle manner and a preacher's patience. He prays with grieving families and says that, in some ways, his job is his own way of finding salvation in a challenging political arena."
(Los Angeles)—For decades, hundreds of well-meaning officials have tried to stop crime in Los Angeles, pumping millions of dollars into various programs, but nothing worked.
Now, according to a Daily News report, the Rev. Jeff Carr, L.A.'s first anti-gang czar may finally be making a difference. (Photo: John McCoy/Staff Photographer)
Said reporter Rachel Uranga: "Carr has thrown himself into his work with a gentle manner and a preacher's patience. He prays with grieving families and says that, in some ways, his job is his own way of finding salvation in a challenging political arena."
Carr, director of the mayor's Office of Gang Reduction and Youth Development, shared of an incident in February he said was one of his toughest nights. A gunman had fired into a crowd at a bus stop and wounded eight people.
Visiting a victim of that attack, a 12-year-old girl, Carr recalls, "All I remember saying is, 'You're alive. You are alive, and that is a good thing, and I know that this is really hard and really horrible, but you are alive and it's going to be OK."'
Then Carr turned to the girl's father and told him, "I am actually a minister more than I work for the mayor, and if you wouldn't mind, I would like to pray for you because that's all I know how to do."'
