Nashville Launches Community Safety Task Force, 1st Meeting Tomorrow - Articles

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Nashville Launches Community Safety Task Force, 1st Meeting Tomorrow

Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Jan 14, 2026

Nashville is launching a Community Safety Task Force that will focus on gun violence and other crime, though officials want to go beyond police patrols and arrests to address issues such as mental health resources. Davidson County Juvenile Court Clerk Lonnell Matthews will co-chair the 29-member committee selected by Mayor Freddie O'Connell. According to WSMV, Matthews said the task force will bring Metro agencies and nonprofit leaders together to work towards a common goal of improving safety. “How can we do that in a very strategic, coordinated way to where we don’t have agencies or different groups working in silos,” Matthews asked. Answering his own question, he said, “Make sure that the entire city, the entire county feels like it has the resources, the programs and the individuals necessary to keep those communities safe.” The task force will hold its first meeting Jan. 15, from 4-6 p.m. CST at the Lentz Public Health Center, 2500 Charlotte Ave., Nashville 37209.