In the midst of a bloody month for the city of Brotherly love, Mayor Michael Nutter will unveil a new initiative to deal with the recent violence in Philadelphia.
At least 31 people have died from violent crime in the city since the new year began. Mayor Nutter will address the violence and announce a new plan to deal with it.
The announcement comes a day after a violent Wednesday in Philly. Police say one man was shot in the head in Frankford, a man and a woman were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide in Logan and another man was shot and killed in West Philadelphia.
“It’s really a shame how bad the violence has become,” said one resident. “It’s really sad.”
The plan also comes in the aftermath of the murder of Rosemary Fernandez-Rivera who was shot and killed while working at a West Kensington corner store. Her family believes she was targeted because she was cooperating with police in another murder investigation.
“My heartfelt sympathy goes out to this family,” said Dorothy Johnson-Speight of Mothers in Charge. “But I really do believe that more needs to be done to support folks who want to give information.”
Mayor Nutter’s initiative could feature more than 100 new police officers as well as high rewards to encourage residents to speak up about crime in their community. The announcement will take place at 2 p.m. at Strawberry Mansion High School.
