Philadelphia mayor calls for gun control after police standoff: ‘We have to do something’ – By Tal Axelrod (The Hill) / Aug 15 2019
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney (D) called for increased gun control following an hours-long shootout between police and a gunman that wounded six officers.
“Our officers need help. They need help with gun control. They need help with keeping these weapons out of these people’s hands,” Kenney told reporters Wednesday night as the situation as ongoing.
“Our officers deserve to be protected and they don’t deserve to be shot at by a guy for hours with an unlimited supply of weapons and an unlimited supply of bullets. It’s disgusting and we have to do something about it.”
Kenney tore into both national and state lawmakers who he said were taking inadequate action on getting guns out of the hands of criminals, citing opposition from groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA).
“Whether it’s our six officers who were shot or it’s some 16-, 17-, 20-year-old kid on the streets of Philadelphia who gets shot with guns that shouldn’t be in people’s hands,” he said. “It’s aggravating. It’s saddening. And it’s something that we need to do something about.”
Police announced Thursday morning that the suspect in the shooting is in custody and that the six officers who suffered gunshot wounds were discharged from area hospitals.
Police have not released the gunman’s name.
Democratic calls for new gun control measures have increased in recent days following two mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio earlier this month that left more than 30 people dead and dozens injured.
