'Everything Is An Excuse': Mother Of Philadelphia Homicide Victim Hammers Mayor Jim Kenney Over Gun Violence Epidemic
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- It's a grim milestone -- 500 homicides and the year isn't over yet. The number ties the record set back in 1990.
Wednesday at City Hall, the mayor and other officials held a press conference to address the city's gun violence epidemic. Mayor Jim Kenney criticized lawmakers in Harrisburg for what he says is inaction when it comes to the crisis.
CBS3 watched the news conference in real-time with a mother who lost her 23-year-old son to a tragic shooting in West Philadelphia on the Fourth of July this year. She has a question for the mayor.
Police still need help identifying the shooters seen in the shocking security video. Video shows the moment gunfire erupted back on July 4 during a holiday party in West Philadelphia. Dozens of people are seen running for their lives.
"And my baby was out there celebrating and somebody took his life," mother Pamela Owensby said.
The grieving mother of 23-year-old Sircarr Johnson says this Thanksgiving will feel different without her son at the dinner table.
"Even though I'll be with the family, it will never be the same," she said.
"It's easier to get a gun in Pennsylvania than it is to get a driver's license," Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said.
As Kenney spoke at a news conference Wednesday, Johnson's mother watched from her Olney home. She had a question for the mayor about the city's record-breaking homicide rate.
"When will it stop?" Owensby asked.
CBS3 relayed that question to the mayor, making sure to get an answer as he was about to leave.
"It will stop when we can get control over weaponry in this state. It will stop when we will get more of our kids plugged into programs that will put them on the right path. But I don't know exactly the date it's gonna stop," Kenney said.
"It's sickening. Everything is an excuse. It's just an excuse. He's not saying what they're gonna do. He's not making a plan," Owensby said of the mayor's response.
No arrests have been made in Johnson's murder.
Owebnsby also worries she and too many other families will never get closure if police are overwhelmed with a record-breaking number of murder cases to solve.
For a list of gun violence resources in Philadelphia, click here.
