Philadelphia police, DA, SEPTA get new funding to fight gun violence
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- In an effort to combat gun violence, three Philadelphia entities received millions of dollars in grant money from the state, leaders said Thursday.
The Philadelphia Police Department, SEPTA and the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office Gun Violence Task Force will receive a combined $50 million. It's part of a $170 million grant package approved by Gov. Tom Wolf's administration.
"Eighteen months ago, that money did not exist," state Sen. Vincent Hughes said.
Officials said the money will help as the city tries to combat gun violence.
Here's the three agencies' share of the money:
- Philadelphia police: $25 million
- Philadelphia District Attorney's Office Gun Violence Task Force: $20 million
- SEPTA: $5 million
The influx of funding was discussed in a news conference Thursday at Mill Creek Recreation Center, at 47th and Brown Streets in West Philadelphia. Mayor Jim Kenney, Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw and Hughes were in attendance.
The rec center was the site of a fatal shooting that killed an employee in September 2022.
Tiffany Fletcher, an employee at the rec center, was fatally shot after she was caught in the crossfire of a gun battle. As family, neighbors and coworkers mourned Fletcher, city leaders said they wanted to increase safety at city parks and playgrounds.
"We will get closer to the point of turning around evidence to generate leads faster," Mike Garvey, with the Philadelphia PD's office of forensic science, said, "so that rather than catching someone on their sixth or seventh rape, maybe it's the first one."
Police are planning to use the money to hire 120 forensic scientists and expand its crime lab, which has been backlogged with evidence for years.
"Picture if you were sick and you went to a hospital," Garvey said, "and it was one-third of the size it should be and you were put in a gurney and you saw in the hallway for a year and hoping someone would treat you, unfortunately, that is what we deal with when it comes to evidence."
Meanwhile, the district attorney's office is planning to use its portion of the money for license plate reader technology, installing more cameras and expanding its digital evidence lab.
"This grant is going to allow us to triple the size of that lab," Bill Fritze of the DA's Gun Violence Task Force said, "and will allow us to talk with each other throughout the departments."
As for SEPTA, the transit agency is planning to use the money to expand ZeroEyes, a pilot program that detects guns.
"It's new technology. It's never been tried in a transit environment," SEPTA COO Scott Sauer said. "So what this will do for us is allow us to take a bigger, harder look at ZeroEyes."
This is a one-time grant. Officials are working to secure funding for the long-term to keep new staff members employed and the equipment maintained.
