Chaka Fattah

I'm not waiting for the first year of an administration. I'm taking action to end the violence right now. I have set up a gun moratorium in partnership with other legislators and the Philadelphia Police Department, which has taken more than 1,000 guns off the streets.

I set up a tipline in conjunction with the Citizens Crime Commission that rewards citizens who turn in people with illegal guns.

In my first year as mayor, I will begin adding police officers to our force, immediately increase the number of surveillance cameras throughout the city, and work with business owners to give the police access to their internal surveillance cameras.

I will institute targeted patrols by specially trained officers to go after illegal guns on our streets. I will redeploy our police force to maximize the number of officers on the street and focus the department's efforts on homicide clearance.

I will call on citizens to do their part, as well. By working to improve cooperation between the Philadelphia Police Department and Town Watch programs, and urging the faith-based community not only to pray, but also to adopt ex-offenders, we can fight this epidemic of violence.

But we also must focus on our young people. That's why I will expand effective programs such as the Youth Violence Reduction Partnership and the Adolescent Violence Reduction Partnership.

Finally, I will call on the district attorney and other prosecutors to prosecute gun offenders and make information about gun trafficking and illegal gun sales a priority in plea deals and sentencing.