Philadelphia City Council hosts second day of emergency hearings on gun violence
PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia City Council members hosted a second day of public hearings on gun violence that has plagued the city in recent weeks.
"It feels like there is no plan. There is no way forward, no path forward for us to address this," city councilmember Cindy Bass said.
In the second day of an emergency city council hearing on gun violence, the leaders of the city’s $10 million Office of Violence Prevention were hit with a barrage of tough questions on what they’re doing to cut gun violence and keep kids from being shot.
"We’re talking about more of an ability to be nimble and quick. We know we’re not there. We’re not pleased at all with the progress. But with the Office of Violence Prevention we have an opportunity to bring agencies together," Theron Pride with the Office of Violence Prevention said.
The hearings come after the grisly shooting death of 7-year-old Zamar Jones while playing on his North Simpson Street porch. The child is one of more than 100 children shot in the city this year.
While Philadelphia’s new police commissioner says officers are pulling guns off the street, a former top police official complained bitterly of weak enforcement of guns laws.
“I never had a time as a deputy commissioner that I believed guns would be marginalized that a guy could have multiple gun cases and still be able to walk the streets," Former Deputy Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said.
Council members appeared deeply frustrated at the lack of clear answers to stanch the bloodshed- with one member offering a simple idea.
"The one thing I hear all the time no matter what section of the city I’m in they say you got a job for me? Can you hook me up with a job?" city councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson said.
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Philadelphia City Council hosts public hearings on gun violence
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