In 2021, the Charlottesville City Council unanimously voted to provide funding for an organization known as the Central Virginia Violence Interrupters, which formed after the fatal shooting of a young man in the community. Gun violence as a trend had continued to grow in Charlottesville, particularly in the Prospect Avenue area. Thus, the need for CVVI became apparent. Uniquely, this organization employs individuals with a criminal background to create de-escalation techniques to avoid violence, utilizing the skills that they have with the justice system to protect the community.
In the first half of 2025, CVVI estimates that their work has prevented 60 crimes, and they continue to serve the community successfully — receiving approximately $200,000 annually from the City to facilitate their community-based approach. Despite this organization’s best intentions, however, Charlottesville plans to drastically reduce its funding for CVVI at the local level, which threatens the organization’s survival and sustainability.
CVVI formed in response to a significant wave of gun violence in the Charlottesville community in 2021. While it is difficult to quantify crimes that have not occurred, CVVI is said to have prevented 350 instances of violence over the last four years, making it an incredible organization for community safety. After CVVI became recognized by Charlottesville community members, their work was rewarded by the City Council with a unanimous vote to help fund the organization. Over $20,000 was donated by the city council in addition to $16,000 from other sources. The City continued to support CVVI up until this last year, when its funding was threatened in part as a result of the substantially high number of organizations competing for limited funding…