A St. Louis County commission focused on combating crime in the region is set to reconvene later this month after a hiatus during the pandemic.

County Executive Sam Page announced the revival of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council at a press conference last Wednesday. The commission has not met since the fall of 2019; before that it hadn’t met since the 1970s — over 40 years ago.

“We know that public safety is more than just policing. It also includes our courts, our prosecutors and all of our residents working together to build a community that works … To tackle all the changes, it’s important to bring all the key players in the criminal justice system together in a more formal way,” Page said.

A 1976 ordinance created the commission, which is comprised of the county executive, prosecuting attorney, police chief, council chairperson, the presiding judge, the director of the criminal justice center, an elected municipal official and two county residents.

Page said Wednesday the reason he had the commission start meeting in 2019 was after the death of 3-year-old Rodney March III, who fatally shot himself in North County in the summer of 2019.

“With this crime commission, we’ll be able amplify the priorities of St. Louis County, and those include enhancing our criminal justice system and making sure we have something in place that treats everyone fairly,” Page said.

The commission is set to meet at 10 a.m. Feb. 23.