Our community is reeling in shock over another senseless shooting and everyone is grasping for answers.
The root causes of gun violence, which in the last month has left one young man paralyzed and another dead, are many.
Before we discuss one of those in another editorial, we want to push a couple of practical and immediate solutions and implore government officials and the community to move swiftly and surely toward addressing our very serious problems with violence.
The first has to do with guns. Without guns it is most likely that Jason Carroll would be alive and Geoff Kennedy, who was paralyzed one month ago by gunshot, would be walking around.
We must immediately tackle the problem of meaningful gun control legislation. One answer would be no concealed weapons. Everybody who carries a gun should have to display it by wearing a holster. This is the law in New Mexico.
Those citizens who feel it's their right to carry a gun, should be willing to make their beliefs visible. And punishment for carrying a concealed weapon should be severe and mandatory. Mandatory sentencing for crimes committed with guns and felony charges carrying serious punishment against minors and others who are found in possession of illegal firearms could also begin to address the immediate problem.
Next is an action that does not require legislation. Stepped up police patrols on Main Street and Back Street and beyond into the Savan area, must become a reality now. This is the path these predators have used for years to come and go as they prey upon the public.
We're talking a six block radius here. We see no reason it can't be patrolled. A quick radio call to a police officer patrolling the areas behind Main Street could result in the immediate apprehension of the offenders or in reverse could warn officers of suspicious activity.
This downtown policing problem has been talked about over and over, while Larry Davis was killed, Geoff Kennedy was paralyzed and Jason Carroll was murdered, to name only a few. Do it now.