READ MOREArrest of Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke’s violence reduction contact has City Hall scrambling
David CookNot Richard Bennett.
Anybody but Richard Bennett.
For the last few months, his phone number — 423-485-1012 — has been the most important phone number in Chattanooga. Hundreds of young black men from across the city have been dialing it, asking for help. A job. Tattoo removal. A mentor. Something. Anything but this.
Mayor Andy Berke staked everything on Bennett and those 10 digits. Everything. As the city began its Violence Reduction Initiative, they handed out business cards with Bennett’s number printed on them.