The Buck Squad is thrilled to announce a donation of $50,000 from an anonymous donor through the Greater Washington Community Foundation.

Newsradio WINA talks with BUCK Squad

Rates of gun-related injuries are on the rise in Virginia, according to a new dashboard from the Virginia Department of Health. That as murder and aggravated assault rates, often with firearms, are on the rise.

The B.U.C.K Squad—Brothers United to Cease the Killing—is a nonprofit that was formed to reduce area gun violence by intervening in conflicts and de-escalating them before they worsen. By patrolling high-risk neighborhoods, the squad has been able to curb the spike in gun violence that occurred during the pandemic.

Herb Dickerson, executive director of the B.U.C.K. Squad, wants to put a violence interruption team in each of the city’s predominantly Black neighborhoods.

BUCK Squad, a Charlottesville-area nonprofit, is calling on support to stop gun violence at school and home.

Now, Charlottesville businesses are in on the action to stop violence before it happens.

“The incidents that happen in Buffalo and Texas, this is all one problem. It’s a gun problems. It’s gun violence. In our community, we have been affected by this continuously. It hasn’t stopped, it’s been a continuous thing, and that’s why we’re here, because we understand it. We were once a product of it,” BUCK Squad member Bryan Page said.

BUCK Squad is stepping in, helping spot the signs of distress and gang activity before people get hurt.

Following the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic, gun violence spiked across Charlottesville, particularly in the city’s predominantly Black neighborhoods. There were four gun homicides in 2020—a notable uptick from the two homicides in 2019 and one in 2018. By the end of the year, the Charlottesville Police Department had responded to 122 shots-fired incidents. This rise in gun violence continued into 2021, with multiple shootings taking place in or near public housing communities. However, the year ended with zero homicides.

A program aimed at stopping gun violence in New York City just arrived in Charlottesville.

See BUCK Squad featured in Daily Progress.

Two weeks ago, Pertelle Gilmore received an urgent phone call—there was a conflict going on at the Westhaven public housing community. Joined by a few other members of the B.U.C.K. Squad, he rushed to the scene to urge everyone involved to stand down and put away their guns. But while the violence interrupters talked to one group, the other one started shooting.

A group of eighth graders from Albemarle County’s Burley Middle School raised $500 this year for an organization working to reduce the number of shootings in Charlottesville.

The students are part of a new club created by counselor Andrew Davis called the Social Justice Club.

At first, the idea behind the club was to give interested students a space to talk about race and other social issues. But after several months of meetings, the kids decided they wanted to do more than talk.

Investing in Charlottesville’s Black youth is one of the many ways the squad is working to put an end to gun violence, which has significantly increased in the city’s predominantly Black neighborhoods since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, Charlottesville police responded to 122 reports of shots fired and four gun-related homicides—including the December 27 murder of Gilmore’s close friend, 32-year-old Jamarcus “Buck” Washington, who was heavily involved in gun violence prevention.

In late December 2020, a young man named Buck was shot and killed in Charlottesville and Petrelle felt compelled to form a group of men who dub themselves the BUCK Squad, or Brothers United to Cease the Killing. These former felons who have been transformed by the gift of sobriety through the power of the love of God, volunteer to be conflict mediators for gun violence. Petrelle described their new street weapons.

Charlottesville’s B.U.C.K Squad hosts party for kids on South First Street

Reddit - Local Volunteers Working To Prevent Shootings Need Funding

Gilmore and his B.U.C.K. Squad colleague Herb Dickerson say days like this are about showing kids there are good people there for them.

This group may be responsible for a sudden decrease in Charlottesville shootings — and they need help