Gun violence has again struck in Chester County. While many residents think “It’s not an issue here” – the facts tell us otherwise. Last week, a husband and father of two was shot and killed in West Fallowfield during a robbery. On Wednesday, a man brought his gun to Bellingham Retirement Community in East Goshen and shot and killed his parents. Chester County has had 27 gun suicides in 2018, already surpassing the 2017 total of 26 gun suicides.
What can we do? 1. Get educated on candidate positions and vote on Tuesday, Nov. 6. Gun Sense Chester County has compiled voter education materials with candidate positions on this issue. These can be found at our website: www.gunsensecc.com/voting-info. 2. Contact your PA state elected officials to ask them to pass two common sense pieces of legislation. House Bill 2227/Senate Bill 1141 bills to enact a Extreme Risk Protective Order, a tool that helps families and law enforcement temporarily remove guns from those showing signs of potentially hurting themselves or others, and House Bill 2060 to remove firearms promptly from the hands of domestic abusers. Information on both bills can be found on our website.
All residents are welcome to attend our Sept. 25 meeting on Gun Violence & Mental Illness at 7:15 pm at Birmingham Friends Meeting, 1245 Birmingham Rd. West Chester.
We can reduce gun violence but it requires that we make it a priority and demand action.
Ann Colby-Cummings
Chairperson, Gun Sense Chester County
