Rising Gun Violence And Pandemic Drive First-Time Gun Buying
And President Joe Biden will meet with key law enforcement leaders from across the country to try to reduce crime rates. Meanwhile, The Washington Post discusses surging gun purchases, while the AP News reports that grief counselors are in short supply even as violent crime spikes up.
AP:
Biden To Talk Crime With City, Police Leaders Nationwide
President Joe Biden will host New York City’s Democratic mayoral candidate and other city and law enforcement leaders from around the country to talk about reducing crime. Eric Adams, Brooklyn borough president and the likely next mayor of New York, plus Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser and San Jose, California, Mayor Sam Liccardo are expected to attend the meeting Monday, according to two people familiar with the plans. They were not authorized to speak publicly about the meeting and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. (Lemire, 7/11)
The Washington Post:
Pandemic, Police Violence, Calls To ‘Defund The Police’ Fuel A Surge Of First-Time Gun Buyers
In blue cities and red suburbs alike, firearms purchases soared last year — to the highest level in half a century, based on federal background checks. A striking portion of those sales went to first-time gun buyers — 40 percent, according to the firearms industry’s trade association. Other studies show first-timers accounting for more like a fifth of sales in 2020, but that’s still unusually high, retailers said. ... From the downtown streets left empty by the pandemic’s shutdowns to the sharp spike in homicides and the nationwide conflict over the role and behavior of police officers, a disorienting and often frightening year drove many decisions to buy guns, according to dealers and buyers alike. (Fisher, Green, Glass and Eger, 7/10)
AP:
Grief Counselors In Short Supply With Gun Violence Rising
Crime has been spiking nationwide after it plummeted in the early months of the pandemic, with many cities seeing the type of double-digit increase in gun violence that is plaguing Philadelphia. The Biden administration has sent strike forces to Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., to help take down gun networks. Biden has encouraged states to use COVID-19 relief money to hire police or additional counselors. Philadelphia is one of 15 cities nationwide joining a federal effort to expand and enhance community violence interruption programs. (Lauer, 7/11)
