Rising crime has been a perennial issue in Montgomery, recently highlighted by a late-night shootout downtown that left two dead and 14 injured. Mayor Steven Reed has tried to blame the violence on the state’s “lax” gun laws, but State Rep. Reed Ingram (R-Pike Road) said it’s due to the mayor’s inability or unwillingness to prioritize public safety.

On a recent episode of “1819 News: The Podcast,” Ingram explained how Mayor Reed has refused to enforce a recently enacted anti-loitering law and neglected to recruit more police officers.

“Steven is the only city [mayor] in the state that's not enforcing it because he's scared of the Southern Poverty Law Center,” Ingram said. “We've had 17, count it, 17 people get run over last year, standing in the middle of the road asking for money and

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