Newark to Add Police to Stem Rising Violent Crime

Newark will hire 100 more police officers as part of an effort to stem the rising tide of violence in the city.

Mayor Luis Quintana and law enforcement officials announced the measures Tuesday.

City Police Director Samuel DeMaio says he will shift dispatch functions to civilian employees so 25 more officers can go back on the streets. He also says the city is looking into having gun buybacks regularly instead of once or twice a year.

Police department statistics showed Newark topped 100 murders in 2013, the first time that has happened since 2007. Police say 111 people were murdered in Newark last year, including five who had been shot the year before but died in 2013, and one person who was killed inside a prison.

(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)