Are Philly’s gun buyback events ‘political theater?’ | Morning Newsletter
And, Margate’s growth is pushing locals’ limits.
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As football season heats up, the weather seems to be cooling down, with morning temps expected in the refreshing 60s today and through the week. But stay vigilant: Summer’s sizzle is not over.
In today’s newsletter:
🏗️ Overbuilding: Margate homeowners are getting pushback on third-story decks and seven-bedroom plans as the Shore town, like so many others, is awash in new construction.
📢 Pa.’s political DNA: Mehmet Oz was always going to face an uphill climb as a celebrity doctor trying to appeal to everyday Pennsylvania voters. But the state’s parochial nature has made it even harder.
📍 Map requests: Maps might seem like an unlikely venture, but a Lewisburg, Union County, couple started a business that combines nostalgia and a love of history with “augmented reality” technology.
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— Tommy Rowan (@tommyrowan, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
Philly buyback events have yielded 1,000 guns in the last three years. None had been used in crimes.
In 2021, as shootings and gun sales rose to unprecedented levels, many residents turned their firearms over to the city’s Police Department, data show.
During 16 gun-buyback events, 558 handguns and 188 long guns were turned in. Yet of the more than 1,000 weapons turned in over the last three years, not a single one has been linked to a crime.
Experts on the issue say the lackluster statistics show the events are not effective in reducing crime. Joe Giacalone, a former New York Police Department sergeant-turned-CUNY criminology professor, called buyback events “political theater.”
Reporters Ryan Briggs and Ellie Rushing have the full story.
What you should know today
Scores of alumnae flocked to Archbishop Prendergast High School on Saturday, and will return today, for a final pre-demolition sale before the landmark Delaware County building is razed.
For decades, a thriving youth club has operated out of Fox Chase Farm, where city students learn to raise pigs, sheep and other animals. Now, the club’s existence is threatened.
Leaders in Philly’s Japanese American community oppose a proposed statue to honor Korean women forced into sex work during World War II.
Penn scientist Jim Wilson’s advances in gene therapy obscured a darker side to his leadership of the acclaimed university research center, staffers say.
The University City Townhomes saga is just one example of an issue that could play out at other long-standing affordable housing complexes in the next few years.
❓Pop Quiz❓
What’s the name of the beloved plane sculpture that’s leaving Lenfest Plaza after a decade-plus exhibition?
A) Griska Grumman
B) Jordan’s Beacon
C) Grumman Greenhouse
D) Art Safari
🧩 Unscramble the Anagram 🧩
KDCI LVREIME
Hint: Revered former Eagles coach who was recently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Send us your own original anagram to unscramble if you’d like. Email us if you know the answer.
Photo of the Day
🎶 For today’s Sunday track, we’re snapping along to Bob Dylan’s tail-of-summer tune “Summer Days.”🎶
👋🏽 Enjoy the relative reprieve from the heat out there.