Philly City Councilmembers call for an increased focus on violence interruption as shootings continue

As shootings continue at a troubling pace in Philadelphia, several city councilmembers said Tuesday that in addition to bolstering enforcement by police and prosecutors, the city should give additional attention and resources to programs that seek to interrupt potential gun violence before it happens.

During a virtual hearing that featured lengthy testimony from Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw and District Attorney Larry Krasner, Councilmembers Helen Gym and Jamie Gauthier — two of the chamber’s more progressive voices — asked questions that centered on such strategies, including how to involve more community members in engaging with young men who might be at risk of becoming involved in a shooting, or collaborating more with neighborhood organizations about possible conflicts being monitored by police in the area.

“I just think we have to have as significant a strategy around violence prevention and interruption as we do around the enforcement piece,” said Gauthier, who last year called on Mayor Jim Kenney to declare a citywide gun-violence emergency.

Gauthier and Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson also asked Krasner about an Inquirer report published online Tuesday that showed conviction rates in nonviolent gun-possession cases — which fell from 69% in 2014 to 63% three years later — had plunged even further, to 49%, since Krasner was sworn into office in 2018.

Krasner said his office had high conviction rates in other crimes — homicides and shootings — while acknowledging: “We are not happy with the conviction rate for possession of guns.” In response to a request from Gauthier, he vowed to provide data about the issue to councilmembers to continue the discussion.

The session also featured remarks from community members and lasted well into the afternoon.

And it came after another grim night of gunfire in the city.

Around 5 p.m. Monday, 21-year-old Dominic Billa — the stepson of a detective in the District Attorney’s Office — was fatally shot in the Philadelphia Mills mall food court, Krasner said in a statement Tuesday. Police did not report any arrests, and Krasner did not disclose a possible motive.

Three hours later, in Strawberry Mansion, police say, 55-year-old Anthony Merriett was fatally shot while working for a production company that was filming a documentary about the city’s gun violence.

Merriett was shot several times when he left a home on the 1900 block of Paige Street to retrieve some equipment from his van, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small told reporters at the scene.

Officers recovered a production bag and cell phones on the sidewalk, near the van, and are investigating the killing as a possible robbery attempt, police sources said. The department declined to provide further information about the crime Tuesday.

“He was a good person, he knew so many people and everybody loved him — I don’t understand this,” a relative of Merriett’s said when reached by phone. The family did not want to say any more because they were still learning details of the crime.

Through Monday, 119 people have been killed in homicides this year, police said — a 28% increase over last year’s pace.

Deputy Commissioner Ben Naish told Council that 15 of those victims were children, up from four compared with the same date last year. An additional 46 children were shot, he said.

Several councilmembers asked questions about how to keep young people safe, especially as shootings recently have occurred at rec centers and on basketball courts. Outlaw said the department was working on a strategy to increase communication and visibility in those places; Deputy Commissioner Joel Dales declined to offer details, except to say it would include officers not in patrol uniforms.

In response to the questions about increasing intervention, Outlaw told councilmembers her department welcomed and supported efforts by other agencies or community groups to push those programs forward.

But she said her department — which has long struggled to solve shootings — was focusing first on increasing its clearance rate, and also on making sure officers were patrolling areas considered high-risk.

In addition, Outlaw said the department was arresting significantly more people for carrying guns illegally, a tactic she believed was crucial to disrupting potential violence.

“We’ve just been focusing our efforts on the enforcement pieces and the visibility piece,” she said. “We don’t have a solid strategy around interruption, because we’re doing what we can to make sure we’re visible in the places we need to be present.”

Krasner has long voiced support for mentoring and community-based programs, and did so again Tuesday. He said his office has been working with teachers and students — some of whom testified on his behalf at the hearing — has provided counseling to victims through a unique program, and has been hosting job fairs to bolster prevention efforts.

Krasner said he was pleased to hear more calls to increase those types of initiatives.

“We are going to advocate for prevention because it works,” the DA said. “This is what community groups are crying out for all over the city, and we support it.”

Staff writers Mike Newall and Mensah M. Dean contributed to this article.