Gun control tightened amid wave of incidents

Residents and community leaders in Marble Hill and nearby neighborhoods said that that recent shootings in the area highlight the need for tougher gun control laws and punishment for gun-wielding violators.  

While citywide murders were down by 9.7 percent from this year to date during the period of Sept. 1 through Sept. 7, shooting incidents are up 6.8 percent this year. According to crime statistics, there have been 821 shootings this year to date compared to the 769 incidents that were reported at the same time last year. In the confines of the 50th Precinct, six shootings were reported this year to date — one less than the year before. 

One night in August, an elderly woman attempted to cross the street to avoid a dispute on Broadway — only to become an unintended target in the shooting that erupted afterwards. According to police, a group of men were arguing in front of 5203 Broadway on West 225th Street on Friday, Aug. 29 at around 8:53 p.m.  The 84-year-old woman, whose name was not released, was walking on the sidewalk nearby when she noticed the men quarrelling on the sidewalk, according to police. 

She tried to avoid the ruckus by crossing the street. That is when shots rang out and a stray bullet grazed her leg, police said. According to authorities, two to three shots were fired. The East Fordham Road resident was later transported and released from New York-Presbyterian/The Allen Hospital with lacerations on her leg. The investigation is ongoing as authorities review surveillance cameras in the area. No gun was recovered and no arrests have been made, but police have a lead in the case, they said. Police did not release any additional information about a possible suspect.

“The recent gun-related violence in the Marble Hill community deeply troubles me though [it] reminds me of the importance of community awareness,” Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, whose district includes part of Marble Hill, said in an e-mail statement.

Idonia Burrel, a 70-year-old Marble Hill resident, said that she was unnerved after hearing about the elderly woman who was grazed by a bullet.