Gun Violence Task Force Increases Awareness

By: Kaitlyn Malloy

ALBANY, N.Y., Dec 4, 2007- In a city where gun violence has risen at an alarming rate, Albany has officially announced the 13 members of the Gun Violence Task Force to begin a proactive approach to lower gun violence in the area.

The task force will begin a full year of studying issues and recommending solutions for the gun violence damaging the reptutation of the city of Albany. With its newly appointed members, Dominick Calsolaro is proud to announce the start of the task force’s efforts against gun violence. Calsolaro, a common council member in the first ward wrote legislation in order to begin a task force in order decrease the violence concerning the use of firearms.

“ I felt, as did many others, that there is too much violent crime in Albany where a firearm, in most cases a handgun, was used in the violent act.” Calsolaro said.

A lifelong resident of Albany’s South End, he has followed the crime statistics and noticed an increase of violence in his very own neightborhood. After living on Clare Avenue for 20 years, he has not recalled any gun violence until the past five months, where there were at least four shootings within a block of his home. He has experienced the arrests of many of his neighbors, ending in the raiding of pistol-handed rifles and a block from his home, a woman living behind Bishop Maginn High School was shot through the front window of her home has left Calsolaro prepared to attack the issue the city is having.

After picking other members of the community who felt they needed to do something about this issue, Calsolaro realized he had to do his research.

Through the research of nationally known anti-crime initiatives such as Weed & Seed and Project Safe Neighborhood, Calsolaro decided Albany needed a citizen-based task force to receive federal grant funds. Once legislation passed the task force, many citizens stepped up ranging from a 33 - year member of the Department of Correctional Services, Leonard Morgenbesser, also a social policy professor at Empire State College, and Allison D. Banks, a mother who lost her son to gun violence in May of 2006. The goal of this task force is to find out more information on the trafficking of illegal guns and prevent guns from getting in the hands of youths, the city’s greatest threat. Although anxious for improvement, the members realize that change will come slowly.

Task Force members are in charge of looking into at least five other cities of similar size to Albany and investigating the best practices they are using to keep their city safe. The earliest initiative the task force is working on is the intervention with the youth to the dangers and consequences of using firearms.

Banks, a mother whose son was slain in Albany in May 2006, stepped up to represent the task force against gun violence. Early intervention is a plan she had a great deal developing because her son, Ellek Williams was killed by a 17-year-old boy.

“The gangs are becoming more likely to try getting younger children to join and carry weapons because it is harder to prosecute youth offenders,” Banks said.

Morgenbesser has spent most of his life advocating safety on the streets and has done endless research following the progess of gun violence.

“Between 2004 and August 2006, I have tracked gun crime incidents through the media. What I have found is that only about half of the incidents ever make it to the media” said Morgenbesser.

According to the reports, there were 289 gun crimes unreported to the public through media sources between 2004-2006. He does this research in the community as an off-duty citizen and hopes that the information he collects can be used as supporting evidence in order to pass future laws regarding gun violence.

Shortly before the development of the task force, there was brief talk of Mayor Jennings banning armed weapons completely in the city of Albany. This was an idealistic approach to a realistic problem and was shut down shortly after it was brought to legislation. Taking guns away from citizens that obtained them legally and use them for safety purposes would be the only people being denied the right to bear arms, noting that 71 of the cases the district attorney prosecutred last year, did not have legally registered guns.

Bill Morris, a manager at Café Madison near the College of Saint Rose believes the city must take the rights away from only those who abuse them.

“Banning guns from the individuals that keep them to protect themselves and keep them updated and registered should not lose their right to bear arms” Morris said.

The task force has been a top story in many local newspapers in the past few months. Police Chief James W. Tuffey, an Albany police officer is another contributing member to the task force. He is expected to use his first hand experience and knowledge of gun crimes in order to develop tactics to prevent youth gun violence. Many of Albany’s residents believe the task force will help decrease the violence.

Christine Dobbins and Michael Lee are two residents of the Pine Hills neighborhood that think the city is gaining from the task force. As students they feel the city is unsafe and when walking around in the evening, find it risky knowing the high level of gun violence.

“As a student, walking around at night I feel unsafe knowing the high levels of gun violence in Albany” Dobbins said

Knowing there is a gun violence task force that is making strides to correct the city’s problems is a comforting thing to know. Residents such as Michael Lee, believe that although the changes might not come soon, they are in the works and there really are people out there that want to make this city a better place.

The gun violence task force is embarking on its first year as a federal funded group and has great expectations for the changes they plan on making.

“This is very frightening and something needed to be done to find ways to stem the tide of this ever increasing epidemic of gun violence in the Albany community” Calsolaro said, leaving the future of Albany in the hands of its residents.