OPINION:
ANALYSIS/OPINION:
The Washington Times reported on New Year’s Eve 2014 that “the city finished the year with 105 homicides, one more than was recorded in 2013 — a year that included 12 people killed in a mass shooting at the Washington Navy Yard.”
2014 also was the year Muriel Bowser was first elected mayor of D.C.
This week, six weeks before Miss Bowser is expected to be anointed by voters to a second term, the mayor and other officials announced that violence had claimed 119 lives since New Year’s Day 2018. That’s three more than in all of 2017, and there’s still a quarter of the year to go.
Miss Bowser pointed her index finger at guns “in the hands of people who have already demonstrated that they’ll use them, because they may have been convicted of gun crimes already and they’re back on the streets using guns again.”
Ditto Metropolitan Police Chief Peter Newsham, who not only blamed illegal weapons but also said that the criminal penalties for gun violations are insufficient.
“The consequences of illegal firearm possession in our city is not changing the behavior,” the chief said. “We’re arresting sometimes the same folks over and over again for carrying illegal firearms in the city.”
As tempting as it might be, please do not just say “duh.”
Let’s instead ask a likely pivotal question: Does the mayor want crime prevention policies that crack down on illegal people or enforcement policies that crack down on illegal things?
Because God help us if Miss Bowser and other folks in City Hall don’t see a difference.
And, frankly, here’s one that even the progressives who run City Hall and lobby for liberal policies can understand.
A car is photographed running a red light. The city notifies the registered owner of the vehicle. The registered owner is responsible for paying the violation. End of story.
In a different scenario, a motorist is pulled over by police for running a red light. In this scenario, the motorist is cited for violating the law regardless of the who the registered owner is.
When it comes to homicides, Chief Newsham cites the killers and their weapons of choice; Miss Bowser blames the weapons.
The mayor needs a reminder, clearly. The rising homicide rates, overdoses on K2 and assorted violence cannot solely remain the purview of city hall. The religious community must be engaged now, and this life-and-death matter cannot wait until after the January swearing-in ceremonies.
Remind the mayor that the issue is in her lap. Right now. Yet another life was taken at a local gas station before the sun came up Tuesday.
There are people willing to help stop the carnage, but the mayor seems unwilling to ask, beg, cry out for their help — perhaps to the Justice Department offices on Pennsylvania Avenue.
One killing is one too many, but allowing politicians essentially to get away with murder is unconscionable.
Indeed, these moms and dads, coworkers and friends who are losing their loved ones deserve an answer from City Hall: What are you doing to prevent the bloodletting?
Illegal guns are a problem. The criminals pulling the triggers and taking lives are a bigger problem. However, the biggest problem of all is the criminals selling, buying and accessing illegal guns.
Makes you wonder: With all the sanctuary-city and anti-law-and-order rhetoric spewed by D.C. officials, whether the city is plugged into the Justice Department at all any more.
• Deborah Simmons can be contacted at dsimmons@washingtontimes.com.
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