Lansing found a way to reduce gun violence. But the Trump administration is pulling the plug

The city of Lansing invested in a program that reaches the people most likely to pick up a gun. It worked. But now Trump’s Department of Justice is abruptly pulling its support.

LANSING—When fatal shootings spiked in Lansing during the pandemic, city officials turned to an unconventional solution. Rather than rely solely on more police, they embraced a new model: Advance Peace, a community-led initiative focused on reaching the small number of people most likely to be involved in gun violence—and intervening before they pull the trigger. 

The results have been hard to ignore. In the program’s first two years, fatal shootings dropped by more than 50%. Even local police officers and prosecutors stood behind the new approach.

“It’s a program that works to reduce gun violence, and it’s clearly working for us,” Lansing Mayor Andy Schor told The ‘Gander. “I don’t know how anybody can be against a program like that.”

But last month, Schor learned that the US Department of Justice (DOJ), under the direction of President Donald Trump, had abruptly canceled the federal grants that helped build the program in Lansing—and may soon cut off the rest of the funding that helps keep it running.

“I was stunned,” Schor said. “The Department of Justice is canceling programs that are working to reduce gun violence in this city. I was just stunned and I cannot figure this out.”

So far, thousands of dollars in federal grants for Advance Peace have been abruptly cut off and a separate, $1 million research grant was terminated. Program leaders fear another $2 million grant may be next—especially given the vague justification used to cancel the others.

And with about half of Advance Peace’s budget coming from the federal government, city officials say there’s no realistic way to close that gap if federal support vanishes altogether.

“The city doesn’t have  $2 million sitting around somewhere to put in and I don’t know that the state does either,” Schor said. “This means there will be a reduction in assistance.”

A Program Built on Trust—and Results

Launched in late 2022 with funding from the city, county, state, and federal government, the Advance Peace program is based on a model that has shown success in cities like Richmond, California, and Rochester, New York. What makes it different is its focus: not on neighborhoods or at-risk youth in general, but on the small groups most likely to be involved in gun violence.

These individuals are often already armed, involved in conflict, and disconnected from schools, jobs, and social services. Cops typically know who they are, but don’t always have the evidence to intervene. That’s where Advance Peace steps in.

“Because they don’t have access to resources, we can actually change their thinking, attitudes, and ultimately their behavior,” Dr. Paul Elam, who helps run the Advance Peace program through the Michigan Public Health Institute, said. “We connect with them three times a day, high dosages of contact. And when we do, we’re checking on their health and well-being.”

Over the course of an 18-month fellowship, participants receive mentorship, therapy, job coaching, life skills training, and even small stipends for achieving personal milestones. 

The whole idea is to replace the chaos of street life with structure, trust, and support—delivered by credible messengers who have lived similar lives and earned their respect, Elam explained.

“We’re not there to  arrest them. We’re not there to detain them. We’re not there to bring a case against them,” Elam added. “We’re simply there to find out what we can do to build peace.”

And it’s working. In just under three years, Advance Peace has engaged with 70 of Lansing’s most high-risk individuals. And both fatal and non-fatal shootings have sharply declined.

“We believe we contribute to reductions in crime,” Elam said. “And it’s also cost effective.”

Estimates put the societal cost of a single homicide at more than $1.5 million. By contrast, Advance Peace Lansing operates on a budget of about $3.5 million a year. Elam did the math—and he estimates the program has already saved local taxpayers more than $28 million.

Politics Driving the Decisions

Despite the program’s documented success, Advance Peace is now in jeopardy.

In April, hundreds of organizations across the country received grant termination notices from the DOJ. More than $800 million in funding was canceled, including funding for Advance Peace.  

Lansing isn’t the only city affected. A coalition of five nonprofit and community organizations from cities including Detroit, New York, and San Francisco filed a class-action lawsuit against the Trump administration, alleging that the grant terminations were unlawful and put lives at risk.

The suit, filed in May and led by the Vera Institute of Justice, FORCE Detroit, and others, asks a federal court to block the cancellations and restore funding for public safety programs. It argues that the vague rationale for the cuts—that they no longer “effectuate agency priorities”— violates federal law, as well as undermines evidence-based initiatives that are proven to curb violence.

“Organizations that have worked for years to build trust in communities and are successfully reducing violence are having to fire dedicated staff and shutter programs,” said Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward, which is representing the coalition. “The sudden and unlawful termination of these public safety grants makes neighborhoods everywhere less safe.”

Schor is hoping Trump changes his mind about the funding cuts before the program is affected.

“I view this as a ‘ flood-the-zone move,” Schor said. “This is like the tariffs. He’s going to do something. It’s going to hurt. Then, he’ll backtrack when there are complaints. That’s my guess.”

Elam, for his part, has avoided criticizing the administration directly. He’s focused on appealing the grant termination and making the case that Advance Peace still aligns with the DOJ’s newly re-stated priorities of reducing crime, protecting communities, and supporting public safety.

“The new priorities at the Department of Justice are great priorities and we believe that those are the types of things we’re doing through Advance Peace,” he said. “We’re trying to make a case that our program aligns with their strategy and we support the vision of the administration.”

Elam said he’s been working closely with Michigan’s Congressional delegation, including US Rep. Tom Barrett (R-Michigan), to plead his case with Trump administration officials. But if those additional appeals fail, Elam says the program will likely be forced to cut services.

This week, the fellowship is supporting 55 people across the Lansing area. By the end of this year, that number could shrink—along with the full-time staff who are paid to work with them.

“I don’t believe it will stop our work. It will impact our work and it’ll probably require us to scale back—both how many [people] we can support and how many staff we can hire,” Elam said.

For Schor, the stakes couldn’t be clearer.

“We’re asking for appeals and so we’re going to do everything we can to try and get this reversed,” Schor said. “It’s about saving lives. I was very surprised, very upset, very angry because if this program is canceled and violence goes up, that’s not good for our city.”

READ MORE: Food assistance cuts would cost Michigan about $900 million

Don’t miss Michigan’s biggest stories—follow The ‘Gander on X.