Over the Fourth of July weekend, five people were shot in the city of Syracuse. Those shootings were only some of the more recent instances of gun violence in the city.
So, when Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency over the statewide uptick in gun violence, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh was thrilled.
“I welcome the governor's declaration," said Walsh in his monthly briefing on Thursday. "We know it's a crisis. We know it's an emergency -- we live it painfully every day.”
Violent crime, while having decreased over the past few months, is still up by 6% this year with one of the biggest issues being youth violence.
The city has launched summer youth employment opportunities, the Police Athletic League, and has been renovating local parks and playgrounds to keep kids off the streets and away from violence.
“We are ready and willing to wrap our arms around our young people to give our families every resource they need to try to help them through difficult circumstances," said Walsh.
Additionally, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced on Wednesday that her office, along with 13 local police agencies, took down two major drug rings in central New York, seizing 15 guns among other things.
“So we need all hands on deck," said Walsh. "We had it with the attorney general in town yesterday, we have it with the governor's declaration, and we have it with [the Syracuse Police Department] and all of our other community partners.”
However, Walsh says there isn’t one big solution to the city’s violent crime.
“We also need to be honest with ourselves that we don't have all the answers, there are things that we need to learn and, and learn together," he said.
