Tracking gun violence in Philadelphia: September 29, 2020

Above: An additional 62 children and teens have been shot in Philadelphia over the 365-day period ending on September 24, when compared with the same point one year earlier. Altogether, 167 shooting victims under age 18 were shot during the most recent 365-day period. [PCGVR]

Latest Philadelphia data

• Nearly 500 more people have been shot this year in Philadelphia than during the same period last year, including 51 during the seven-day period ending Sunday. Reports of aggravated assaults with guns are up 39.8 percent with 2,680 incidents this year to date. [Philadelphia Police via Google Drive]

• Arrests for aggravated assaults with guns are up by six percent, at 787 through September 20. [Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office]

• Total homicides are up 36 percent vs. 2019, with 343 reported through Sunday night. The pace is running 86 percent ahead of the same period during 2013. [Philadelphia Police]

Voices from the community

• The second episode of WHYY’s “Neighbors in the Crossfire” program will air tonight. You can watch the first episode online now. [WHYY]

• For last week’s National Day of Remembrance: A conversation on gun violence and prevention with Mothers in Charge founder Dr. Dorothy Johnson-Speight and Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. [Mothers in Charge]

• Local pastors are working hard to prevent gun violence in Philadelphia. [WHYY]

• All this week on WURD Radio: Discussing gun violence and prevention each afternoon from 4 to 7 p.m. [WURD Radio]

• Educators in Philadelphia have been working to keep children safe while the schools are closed. [The Trace]

In the news

• Six teenagers were among those wounded in two quadruple weekend shootings in Philadelphia. At least the 23 shooting incidents with four or more victims have been reported so far this year in Philadelphia, up from 14 recorded during all of 2019. [The Philadelphia Inquirer / Gun Violence Archive]

• An update from the Office of Violence Prevention last week said that a “dramatic increase” in violence began to impede their operations shortly after the pandemic broke out. [Phila.gov]

• Rest in Power: Longtime Philadelphia anti-violence activist Bennie Swans has died. [The Philadelphia Sunday Sun]

• The city is now offering microgrants to qualifying community-based organizations engaged in reforming the criminal justice system. [Phila.gov]

National Reports

• The Council on Criminal Justice released their impact report on COVID-19 and crime. Homicide rates rose a stunning 53% between June and August compared to the previous year. [CCJ / Twitter]

• Society of trauma surgeons says structural violence contributes to gun violence. [Annals of Surgery]

• The FBI released their Uniform Crime Report for 2019. A record high 73.7 percent of murders committed with weapons were committed with guns. [FBI / Twitter]

• Five of the 13 cities on pace for record-high murder counts have Republican mayors. [NY Times]

Solutions of the week

• Remote background checks on private sales would help keep guns out of the wrong hands. [The Hill]

• Spikes in gun sales may lead to more suicides but safe storage can help. [NJ.com]

• Chicago homicides are up by 51% this year but down by 33% in a neighborhood where violence prevention programs have taken hold. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Reporting gun violence

• The way we see crime is politicized and influenced by news sources. [The Marshall Project]

• Find and share resources for reporting on gun violence. [PCGVR]

• You can also find our past and future weekly Philadelphia gun violence trackers on our home page. [PCGVR]

Finding help in Philadelphia:

• The Philly Gun Violence Resource List was compiled by WHYY’s Billy Penn and has been released for public use by other media organizations or anyone else. [Google Docs]

• Safe gun storage prevents unintentional shootings and people in Philadelphia are invited to get a free gun lock. [Temple Safety Net]