City of Philadelphia - File #: 160104

• File #: 160104
• Version: 0
• Type: Resolution
• Status: LAPSED
• File created: 2/4/2016
• In control: Committee on Law and Government
• Title: Proposing an amendment to the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter to provide for the creation, appointment, powers and duties of a Commission on Youth Gun Violence; and providing for the submission of the amendment to the electors of Philadelphia.
• Sponsors: Councilmember Johnson, Councilmember Green, Councilmember Bass, Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Blackwell, Councilmember Squilla, Councilmember Jones, Councilmember Henon, Councilmember Domb, Councilmember Quiñones Sánchez, Councilmember Greenlee, Councilmember Oh, Councilmember Parker, Councilmember Gym, Council President Clarke, Councilmember Taubenberger, Councilmember O'Neill

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
2/13/2017	0	Committee on Law and Government	HEARING NOTICES SENT
2/13/2017	0	Committee on Law and Government	RECESSED
2/4/2016	0	CITY COUNCIL	Introduced and Referred	Pass

Title
Proposing an amendment to the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter to provide for the creation, appointment, powers and duties of a Commission on Youth Gun Violence; and providing for the submission of the amendment to the electors of Philadelphia.

Body
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, Aggravated assaults with guns in 2015 increased 11% over 2014, according to a Philadelphia Police Crime Report; and

WHEREAS, The number of homicide victims reported by Philadelphia Police increased from 240 in 2014 to 280 homicides in 2015; 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 h...