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Weekly Brief on Gun Violence Prevention in Philadelphia

Weekly Brief on Gun Violence Prevention in Philadelphia
Each Wednesday morning we share news, research, data, opinions and community responses related to gun violence and prevention in Philadelphia.

Hot spots by street block are highlighted in this section of a map of Philadelphia shooting victims recorded since the beginning of 2015. Twenty-three people have been shot during this period on one block of Kensington Avenue, just south of Allegheny Avenue. [Philadelphia Office of the Controller]
Hot spots by street block are highlighted in this section of a map of Philadelphia shooting victims recorded since the beginning of 2015. Twenty-three people have been shot during this period on one block of Kensington Avenue, just south of Allegheny Avenue. [Philadelphia Office of the Controller]
Crisis map enhanced
• Clicking on “All Years” at top-right on “Mapping Philadelphia’s Gun Violence Crisis” now displays nearly 10,000 nonfatal shootings and more than 2,400 fatal shootings recorded in Philadelphia since January 1, 2015. [Philadelphia Office of the Controller]
Check your sources
Frequently Asked Questions About Permitless Carry
Frequently Asked Questions About Permitless Carry
“The push for permitless carry and the subsequent removal of permit requirements in state law is not only harmful to public safety efforts; it is also rooted in misinformation.”
www.americanprogress.org  •  Share
Gun Violence Misinformation Panel Speaks to Creating Informed Policy Debate
Gun Violence Misinformation Panel Speaks to Creating Informed Policy Debate
“Gun violence has become a fertile ground for misinformation including denying the reality of mass shootings, misleading messaging from lobbying groups, and the deceptive use of statistics.”
today.uconn.edu  •  Share
On the media
“If you think back just a few years ago, maybe a decade ago, mass shooter’s images would be all over the place, all over news coverage on cable television. There would be quick and widespread sharing of their so-called manifestos.” - Journalist Mark Follman on NPR
Updates from Philadelphia
Philadelphia police ask for $24 million boost in next year’s budget, citing gun violence prevention efforts
Philadelphia police ask for $24 million boost in next year’s budget, citing gun violence prevention efforts
“But residents in areas affected by gun violence say they aren’t seeing the type of community policing they feel would prevent shootings.”
whyy.org  •  Share
• Press release: City of Philadelphia Selected to Participate in a National League of Cities’ Initiative to Advance Community Safety. [Phila.gov via Mailchimp]
Domb calls for audit of anti-violence community grant program
Domb calls for audit of anti-violence community grant program
“We must lean into every evidence-based approach to violence prevention at every turn. It is too important for our communities that we get this right.”
www.phillytrib.com  •  Share
Call the HopeLine
“Every time there’s death or a shooting- there is a child or children that are connected to that loss. … We were getting calls once a week, I’d say, from another school who had lost a young person.” - Darcy Walker Krause of Philadelphia’s Uplift Center for Grieving Children 
[WHYY/upliftphilly.org]
As Mother's Day approaches
• Four Philadelphia moms wrote about losing their sons to gun violence in the latest entries published by the “Life Inside” series from the Marshall Project. [themarshallproject.org]
• Reminder: Mothers in Charge is planning a peace walk and rally this Thursday, in advance of Mothers Day. [eventbrite]
Men Who Care
Men Who Care Of Germantown Inc. Mentors Students As Gun Violence Rises In Philadelphia
Men Who Care Of Germantown Inc. Mentors Students As Gun Violence Rises In Philadelphia
• Every Tuesday, Joe Budd spends his lunch hour with young men at Martin Luther King High School. 
philadelphia.cbslocal.com  •  Share
Hundreds Join Men Who Care Of Germantown Inc. To March Against Gun Violence In Philadelphia
Hundreds Join Men Who Care Of Germantown Inc. To March Against Gun Violence In Philadelphia
“It it just so exciting to see the community coming together to fight against this gun violence that’s going on in our community.”
philadelphia.cbslocal.com  •  Share
Former Eagles star speaks out
Troy Vincent: I grew up around domestic violence. It’s time for men to do their part.
Troy Vincent: I grew up around domestic violence. It’s time for men to do their part.
“Continued silence implies that we are OK with this continuing to happen.”
www.inquirer.com  •  Share
Community in action
Philadelphia gun violence: Community gathers to discuss violence prevention efforts
Philadelphia gun violence: Community gathers to discuss violence prevention efforts
“You get a chance to hear and be heard, and those things in a small group setting can be put into a bigger format to see what’s good coming out of this.”
6abc.com  •  Share
City's youth want a seat at the table
City's youth want a seat at the table
“Because they’re the ones who are really being affected, and they’re the ones losing their lives.”
6abc.com  •  Share
Gun violence prevention journalism, cont'd:
• You can listen on Twitter Spaces to WHYY’s community conversation from yesterday on “Getting to the Root: Addressing the Cultural Causes of Gun Violence.” Follow them on Twitter for a link to next Tuesday’s session. [Twitter Spaces/@WHYYNews]
New resource
• There’s a whole section on gun safety on the new “How to Philly” site. [inquirer.com]
Mark your calendars
• The PHIGHT Network announced a new event series:
Killed by police
• A former Philadelphia Police officer has been charged with the murder of a 12-year-old after prosecutors said he fired the fatal shot from near-point blank range while the boy was on the ground and unarmed. [The Philadelphia Inquirer]
Thomas Siderio’s Family Reacts To Arrest Of Former Philadelphia Police Officer
Thomas Siderio’s Family Reacts To Arrest Of Former Philadelphia Police Officer
“It’s just sad. He took him in cold blood. Cold, cold blood.”
philadelphia.cbslocal.com  •  Share
By the numbers
Visualization: PCGVR.org
Visualization: PCGVR.org
39: People shot last week in Philadelphia. The previous week’s total was revised up from 23 to 31 shooting victims.
[Philadelphia Police via Google Drive]
200: People shot during April in Philadelphia, up from 152 shooting victims recorded one month earlier and up from 167 in April, 2021. On average, 109 people were shot in the city during the month of April from 2015 through 2020.
[data.phila.gov]
696: Total Philadelphia shooting victims reported to police this year through Monday, slightly ahead of last year’s pace.
[Open Data Philly via PCGVR]
159: Year-to-date total homicides reported to Philadelphia Police through last night.
73: Year-to-date homicides recorded in Philadelphia as of the same date in 2015.
[PhillyPolice.com]
78,668: Estimated number of guns sold last month in Pennsylvania, up four percent from the previous month but down 19 percent from the same month last year.
[The Trace]
11,000: Weapons sold from six Philadelphia gun shops between 2014 and 2020 and later recovered in criminal investigations or confiscated from owners who had obtained them illegally.
[Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence via New York Times]
728: Road rage incidents involving guns in the U.S. last year, resulting in 132 deaths and 390 injuries. That’s up slightly from 2020.
[The Trace]
124: Average daily number of people who died from gun violence in the U.S. during 2020, according to a new report. Firearm homicides increased 35 percent in 2020, with nearly 5,000 more homicides compared to 2019.
[Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions]
41: Percent increase in youth carrying handguns from 2002 to 2019, particularly among rural, White and higher-income adolescents.
[Boston College]
40: Percent increase in suicide risk for women when her cohabitant brings his handgun into their home.
[Northeastern University]
Hospitals helping
Emotional trauma from Philadelphia gun violence spurs added hospital services
Emotional trauma from Philadelphia gun violence spurs added hospital services
• Philly hospitals are adding staffers with life experiences that can help to address emotional, as well as physical, toll of violent crime.
www.inquirer.com  •  Share
Scott Charles
#Hiring Temple University Hospital is expanding its Victim Advocates program to better support violently-injured patients and is looking for a qualified case manager to join its team of hospital-based responders. Click the link below for more information.
https://t.co/3fzNPmZHOO https://t.co/mK30NEdeYJ
Updates from Harrisburg
Memorial honors 102 victims of gun violence in Harrisburg area; More than 70 of whom died in the city
Memorial honors 102 victims of gun violence in Harrisburg area; More than 70 of whom died in the city
• All of this year’s homicides in the city were committed with guns.
www.pennlive.com  •  Share
Pennsylvania’s violent crime rate went up 27 percent and the homicide rate went up 49 percent during 2020, the last year for which FBI data is available. [abc23.com]
Governor Wolf last week called on Pennsylvania’s General Assembly to take action on commonsense gun violence laws. He also announced that the state intends to morrow new federal ghost gun regulations. [governor.pa.gov/governor.pa.gov]
On Monday, Wolf announced a new statewide technical assistance initiative to support local gun violence prevention efforts. [governor.pa.gov]
State Rep. Isabella Fitzgerald discussed the Safe Communities Grant Program, which would provide funding for communities to install lighting and security cameras around schools, playgrounds, community centers and high-crime areas. Fees on licenses to carry firearms and firearm purchases would fund the program. [pahouse.com]
State Rep. Kevin Boyle of Philadelphia is proposing legislation to prohibit the sale, use, purchase or possession of large capacity ammunition magazines. [Pennsylvania Capital-Star/legis.state.pa.us] 
Looking to seniors
A key to stop teen violence could be wisdom from elders
A key to stop teen violence could be wisdom from elders
“If you have a social conflict look to an older person to give you advice. Most times a senior will listen to a teen and help.”
www.phillytrib.com  •  Share
Research
• The pandemic period was associated with a 15.0 percent increase in firearm-related incidents, a 34.3 percent increase in firearm-related nonfatal injuries, and a 28.4 percent increase in firearm-related deaths. [jamanetwork.com]
One city's price tag
DC gun violence: Each fatal shooting costs over $1.5 million, study says
DC gun violence: Each fatal shooting costs over $1.5 million, study says
• Gun violence in the city directly cost city taxpayers almost $1 billion in 2021 alone.
www.washingtonpost.com  •  Share
Watch and learn
• The Acenda Institute of Health Innovation is hosting a Gun Violence Summit in Glassboro, NJ next week. You can attend for free online. [insidernj.com]
Solution(s) of the Week
5 Ways to Reduce Gun Violence
5 Ways to Reduce Gun Violence
“Many cities are making greater and more community-focused commitments to effective anti-violence work than ever before, but success requires a solid foundation to follow through, right now and for years to come.”
www.route-fifty.com  •  Share
In memoriam
Jerwayne Hunter, 39, 'gentle giant' who protected his family
Jerwayne Hunter, 39, 'gentle giant' who protected his family
“Jerwayne was most proud of his eight children, according to his family. He took them shopping and to amusement parks and couldn’t help but spoil his only daughter.”
www.phillyobitproject.com  •  Share
Crime Fighters: Who killed Daniel "Danny" Puskas?
Crime Fighters: Who killed Daniel "Danny" Puskas?
“There’s just no way to put it. There’s no feeling. There’s no words to describe how this feels. There’s nothing.”
6abc.com  •  Share
A Mother's View: 'I don't have no dad'
A Mother's View: 'I don't have no dad'
“My grandson was only three months old when his dad was murdered. My son was holding him in his arms moments before our lives would change forever.”
www.phillyobitproject.com  •  Share
For more information, please visit:
The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting
The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting
What does the most ethical, impactful and empathetic reporting look like when covering community gun violence?
www.pcgvr.org  •  Share
Did you enjoy this issue?
The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting

Reporting on gun violence comes with exceptional challenges, responsibilities and opportunities. The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting wants to help.

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