York leaders and U.S. Senator Bob Casey tout passage of gun safety bill to reduce violence

York City leaders, CeaseFire PA and U.S. Sen. Bob Casey gathered in front of York City Hall Monday morning to discuss new gun legislation they hope will reduce gun violence in South Central Pennsylvania.

Twenty-five people have been killed in York County so far this year. In the city, 17 people have been shot.

In an arrest on Sept. 23, city police discovered five firearms, including two ghost guns with extended magazines, a handgun with an extended magazine, an assault rifle with an extended magazine, and two guns with auto sears that can turn any firearm into a machine gun.

"We are here because we are facing some of the worst violence we have seen in York City and the county," Mayor Michael Helfrich said.

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The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is gun safety legislation that would expand background checks for those under 21, fund states’ extreme risk protection order laws, crack down on gun traffickers, and invests in mental health resources and school safety.

"We all know that the death of a young person or any person is an awful, horrific tragedy to the life of the family and the community," said Casey. "It was once the case when auto accidents and other accidents were the leading cause of death among children and adolescents. Today, gun violence is the leading cause of death of children and adolescents in the United States."

The legislation also targets the “boyfriend loophole." Federal law only prohibits married and live-in domestic abusers from having guns. It does not prohibit dating partners. The legislation would prohibit any convicted domestic abuser from owning a gun.

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Under the act, $250 million would be available to fund community-based violence prevention initiatives.

"This additional funding source is crucial, as there is a significant number of extremely effective community-based organizations that have been instrumental in curving or interrupting violence," said Deputy Director of Government Affairs at CeaseFire PA Brandon Flood. "Therefore this available funding will enable organizations and entities that are already doing the work to be able to further upscale their efforts."

In addition to funding violence prevention initiatives, $750 million will be awarded to states in the form of grants to fund crisis intervention programs.

"For example, think of someone who is a legal gun owner but they are exhibiting suicidal behavior or a loved one that's under extreme stress or depression," said Flood. "Would you want the option to remove that firearm temporarily in order to get them the help they need? Pennsylvania does not have a statutory framework in place that sanctions the utilization of those extreme risk protection orders."

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Helfrich said the new law is a step in the direction to reduce gun violence, however, he said that it is still not enough. "We are failing our families, children, loved ones," he said. "We know that people are having problems that we should be helping. We are grateful for the money for mental health but we still have work to do."

Katia Parks covers public safety issues for the York Daily Record. Please feel free to reach her at KParks@ydr.com. Follow her on Facebook (@Katia Parks), Twitter (@parksphoto), and Instagram (@katia.l.parks).

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Passage of gun safety law touted by York leaders, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey