Mayor Kenney pleads for gun control following North Philly police shooting
NORTH PHILADELPHIA - Mayor Jim Kenney pleaded for gun control after six Philadelphia police officers were shot in North Philly Wednesday afternoon.
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The incident unfolded around 4:30 p.m. Wednesday on the 3700 block of North 15th Street as officers were serving a narcotics warrant.
"These officers need help, they need help. They need help with gun control. They need help keeping these weapons out of these people's hands, " the mayor said in a press conference Wednesday night.
Kenney said he was thankful that officers' injuries weren't life-threatening.
He added, "I told you earlier, the two little boys if the officer had his head grazed just a little bit more, the two little boys would grow up without their dad because this government at the federal and state level don't want to do anything about keeping these guns off the streets and out of the hands of criminals."
Three officers were taken to Temple University Hospital while another three officers were taken to Einstein Medical Center. Police say all six officers have been released from the hospital. One officer is still being treated.
"It's nothing short of a miracle that we don't have multiple officers killed today," Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross said.
Today's shooting of six officers is the most Philadelphia officers shot in 49 years since seven officers were shot in August 1970 during tensions following a Black Panther party raid.