JACKSONVILLE, Ark. — There's just something about Jacksonville for Mayor Bob Johnson.
"We really are a tight-knit community," Johnson said, smiling.
As the Jacksonville native has gotten older, times have changed— that has also meant an increase in crime.
"It's like a family," he said. "With the family, a couple brothers may be fighting, but that happens."
Jacksonville, like many cities, has seen recent issues with crime. Just this past weekend, the city saw its fourth homicide of the year at the Willow Bend Apartments.
We reached out to the complex for a comment and were told that a manager would get back to us.
But tight-knit communities don't let issues divide them— they try and fix them.
"We are doing everything as much as we possibly can," April Kiser with the Jacksonville Police Department said. "Having officers out on the street."
Kiser said that they've already made strides over the summer, and have been getting better.
"We are in those neighborhoods, we're canvassing," Kiser said. "We're out there looking for those incidents, attempting to be able to catch them in the action."
But there will always be an opportunity to improve, and Johnson said they've got an idea.
"You have an officer that is monitoring many cameras around town, and can maybe even see something before it happens," he explained.
You may recognize the name for that type of space— a real-time crime center. Those cameras would also be able to detect the sounds of gunshots.
It may not solve every problem, but it would be a start.
"I know where to put our resources, and make best use, maybe make one officer four," Johnson said.
And Johnson said that anything helps when it comes to protecting a tight-knit community like Jacksonville.
"We're making an impact because what we want is to make people that want to be troublemakers uncomfortable in Jacksonville," he said.
Johnson added that they estimate that the real-time crime system could cost somewhere in the ballpark of $250,000.