WHEREAS, According to data collected in 2014 through the FBI’s Universal Crime Reporting Program, nearly half of gun violence victims in Philadelphia are under the age of 25; and
WHEREAS, The rate of youth firearm possession in Philadelphia is among the highest rates for major cities in the United States, according to data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and
WHEREAS, According to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Center for Injury Research, almost half of the 1,378 firearm injuries in Pennsylvania in 2013 occurred in Philadelphia County; and
WHEREAS, According to population statistics and gun homicide rates for Philadelphia, the approximate gun homicide rate per 100,000 people in Philadelphia in 2014 was 13.26, a figure well above the national average of 10.64; and
WHEREAS, Gun violence disproportionately affects minority communities. According to the FBI’s Universal Crime Reporting Program, 81.4% of the shooting victims and 82.4% of shooter offenders in Philadelphia in 2014 were African American; and
WHEREAS, Such disproportionate violence affecting minorities in low-income neighborhoods in Philadelphia creates an impediment to neighborhood rejuvenation and detracts greatly from the overall quality of life; and
WHEREAS, Diversionary and intervention-focused programs, such as Focused Deterrence and Philadelphia Ceasefire, have helped to decrease gun violence in especially dangerous areas and have helped to deter some young citizens from gun crimes; and
WHEREAS, Despite these efforts, Philadelphia still recorded over 1,000 shooting victims in both 2014 and 2015; and
WHEREAS, Working to prevent youth gun violence will help to lower Pennsylvania’s unusually high prison population of 355,600, the 5th highest in the country according to a United States Department of Justice report from 2013; and
WHEREAS, Preventing youth gun violence saves citizens from death or spending life in prison, and thus improves the overall quality of life in our great city of Philadelphia; now therefore, be it
RESOLVED, THAT THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA Hereby authorizes the Philadelphia City Council Committee on Public Safety to hold hearings regarding the establishment of a comprehensive strategy for reducing and eliminating youth gun violence.
End