Lt. Gov. Austin Davis visited Franklin County in February to showcase how the Shapiro-Davis Administration’s investments in violence prevention have made Pennsylvania communities and schools safer over the last three years.
Commonwealth Media Services
Commonwealth Media Services
Lt. Gov. Austin Davis visited Franklin County in February to showcase how the Shapiro-Davis Administration’s investments in violence prevention have made Pennsylvania communities and schools safer over the last three years.
Check out WITF’s The Spark for more information on Lt. Gov. Davis’ efforts to reduce gun violence in Pennsylvania.
Austin Davis remembers hearing the gunshots on his block in McKeesport, Pa., when he was 16 years old. His mother ran out of the house with towels, hoping to staunch the bleeding of the man who had been shot until the paramedics arrived.
The experience shattered his sense of safety in his neighborhood, Davis said, and soon after he began what would become a long and continuing political career. Now Lt. Governor of Pennsylvania, Davis sits on the state’s Commission on Crime and Delinquency and works to fund gun violence prevention projects across the state.
“The quickest way to take a gun out of somebody’s hand is to put a paycheck in it,” Davis told WITF’s The Spark.
To do that, Davis said people need quality education and opportunities to build careers.
Under Davis and Gov. Josh Shapiro, the state has spent over $1 billion on violence prevention, Davis said. That funding has flowed to 7,000 grantees across the state, in a mix of law enforcement, violence interruption and community development programs.
“We can’t police our way out of this problem,” Davis said. “It’s a part of the solution, but it’s not the solution.”
As part of a national trend, Pennsylvania has seen a drop in violent crime, including a significant drop in fatal gun violence, according to Davis.
“Last year, Philadelphia had the lowest number of homicides it’s seen since the 1960s,” Davis said. “But obviously, there are still communities that are struggling.”
Regulating guns has long been a political wedge issue, but Davis said politicians are starting to come together from across the aisle.
“What gives me hope is that I think people are viewing this from a less partisan lens than they were, I will say, 20 years ago,” he said. “Gun violence has impacted some of our most sacred spaces.”
Preventing further violence is not a partisan issue, Davis added.
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