According to statistics gathered from Antioch and Pittsburg police departments, violent crime has taken a downturn this year. At the same time, based on reports in the media and from school districts, violent incidents involving young people appear to be on the rise.

• Recently, two men shot a young man dead in Antioch in the Sycamore neighborhood. The men are still at large.

• A young man was shot while sitting in his car in Oakley. Police suspect it is gang-related.

• Two young men who are connected to a gang were arrested for shooting a man on an Antioch street.

• A member of an Aryan gang fatally stabbed a man in Bay Point.

“While the number of total violent crimes may have gone down, media reports indicate that gangs are involved in a greater percentage of the crimes committed in East County,” said Contra Costa Supervisor Federal Glover.

Criminal violence in East County has attracted the attention of one of the top law enforcement officials in the state. Larry Wallace, director of the Division of Law Enforcement in the Attorney General’s office, will be the keynote speaker at Peace in the Streets, an upcoming local anti-violence and anti-gang forum.

“Being smart on crime, that’s a part of collaborating and working with local entities and other forms of law enforcement, other groups within the community … not just a lock-’em-up-and-throw-away-the-key approach,” said Wallace, who has been in law enforcement for 28 years.

While gang-related incidents in East County pale in comparison to those in other parts of the Bay Area, Glover and the East County Gang Task Force want to make sure that it doesn’t get any worse.

Glover and the task force are sponsoring the Peace in the Streets Forum on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Pittsburg High School.

To pre-register for the Peace in the Streets Forum, visit www.cccounty.us/supervisorglover or call 925-427-8138. Registration will also be accepted at the door. The forum is free and open to the public.