JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It's been a controversial issue: the relationship between African Americans and law enforcement.
After incidents in Ferguson, Missouri; New York and now the University of Virginia, the nation's "black lives matter" movement has come to the forefront.
A University of North Florida forum was held Monday to share the importance of establishing relationships with law enforcement in our local community.
"We have a lot of initiatives in the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office to build those relationships in the community. I've said many times that you cannot build relationships in the middle of a crisis, you can only access the ones that you already have. We've done that very well. But It's a work in progress, we're always wanting to do more," Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford said.
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Sheriff Rutherford also said juvenile arrests are down, over 50 percent since 2009.
But he says we have to continue that process because it only takes one incident to create a problem.
He said the next sheriff coming into office must be involved and transparent with the community.