 Good afternoon. My name is Brendan McGuire. I'm the Chief Counsel to Mayor Adams We're here at Gracie Mansion Having just concluded a very productive several hours worth of discussion as part of the 2022 mayors against illegal guns summit We had over 15 mayors to participate in this morning from across the country And as I said the exchanges were Incredibly thorough and thoughtful and I think valuable to everyone who participated We're going to have several participants in the summit Provide remarks here this afternoon One of the essential partners for today's summit and an organization that has also proven to be an invaluable ally to so many mayors and local leaders with respect to gun violence is Every town for gun safety They are leading the fight in so many different ways in this area So we're joined today, and we're going to hear from first Nick Soplina Who is the senior vice president for law and policy for every town? Thank you. Thanks Brendan. Thank you mayor for having us here And thanks to all the mayors who participated today was really a remarkable day So my name is Nick Soplina. I'm with every town for gun safety And I'm honored to be here today to speak clearly To the industry's role in gun violence in this country Spiking gun violence has rightfully gotten a lot of attention in the news You've covered mass shootings in detail You've covered daily gun violence You asked hard questions of mayors and police chiefs about what they are doing to curb gun violence But too often the story is missing a key player Too often. We're not asking the right folks. What are you doing to reduce gun violence? I'm talking about the gun industry the makers Distributors and manufacturers that are selling and profiting off of products that are routinely used in crimes And that are fueling the epidemic of gun violence What do I mean by routinely? Well, for example between 2016 and 2020 over 1 million of the industry's products firearms were recovered by law enforcement in connection to a crime but The gun industry would rather we not talk about that But that's in fact what we did at the summit today The gun industry would rather we not talk about how local Comprehensive crime gun tracing can help identify problem dealers whose practices might be flooding our streets with illegal guns But today we did The gun industry would rather we not talk about how Responsible monitoring of their own supply chains could stop diversion of guns into illegal markets But today we did In point of fact the industry would prefer we not talk about them or their record profits But today we discussed and in a meaningful step towards accountability revealed The top five gun manufacturers that are responsible for the most guns recovered in crimes and in 12 of the cities participating here today Here are the top lines Five gun manufacturers accounted for over half of all the recovered crime guns in these cities Led by as you can see here Glock then Taurus Smith and Wesson Ruger and Polymer 80, which is the country's largest manufacturer of ghost guns showing that ghost guns are now topping the list Collectively these five manufacturers just these five Accounted for nearly ten thousand recovered crime guns in a single year nearly twenty thousand over two years in Nine of the 12 cities that participated today the top manufacturer of recovered crime guns was Glock Each of these manufacturers saw increased recoveries from 2020 to 2021 But Polymer 80 the ghost gun manufacturer Experienced the biggest year-over-year increase nearly a 50% jump Today is just the start With commitment from these mayors we're going to analyze the data and we're going to name names and We hope those of you covering gun violence make a practice of doing the same Because at every gun crime scene there's a gun and behind that gun is a company That is making a profit and that is making business decisions that is costing us lives We at every town look forward to working with these mayors this group and expanding this group to finally hold the gun industry Accountable for its role in gun violence. Thank you Thank You Nick Now today's summit was done in partnership with the African-American Mayors Association And so now we'll hear from the president of AMA Mayor Frank Scott of Little Rock Thank you so much today in partnership with mayors against illegal guns The African-American Mayors Association had the opportunity to bring to light and attention an issue that we all know too well as a gun violence epidemic as We understand that this is an epidemic and a public health issue We also know that we have to continue to focus on what do we do to really solve it? We had this opportunity with our fellow mayors Led by Mayor Eric Adams and we're so grateful for him in his hospitality and his leadership in what he's been able to Do here in New York City But the fact matter is each of us receive a phone call each and every day about a homicide dealing with gun violence and illegal guns And the question is because we're the ones calling the mothers the fathers the sisters the brothers We're the ones attending the funerals. We're the ones saying the prayers But it's cold comfort until there's a true solution And that's what the reason why we all met today as we are all Strategizing together working together in a concerted effort to solve one of our nation's most crucial problems right now And that's this point today is as we charge forward together as we go after the gun manufacturers Putting them on notice that we're here to address this issue this plague in our cities. Thank you so much I'll now introduce one of our neighboring mayors to the north The the mayor of Mount Vernon Mayor Sean Patterson Howard Good afternoon everyone I'm just really excited to be here today as One of the national co-chairs of mayors against illegal guns and the vice president of the African-American Mayors Association We have waited for this day to come together and have a very strategic and intentional conversation About addressing gun violence in our communities as well as dealing with the manufacturers of these guns and Yes, this is the compilation of what we found in our communities. I Had an unrelated press conference yesterday and I spoke with the mother of Anthony Boyd who was murdered in Mount Vernon in May of 2021 and She lives in Liberia and she sent her son to live with his father and other family members here in The United States here in New York for a better opportunity and a chance and she says I cannot believe that my son died in New York in America the land of the free the home of the brave where there's great opportunity When my community is only 20 years away from a civil war where so many young people died But this is what we're seeing because of the proliferation of illegal guns crime guns that are in our community These crime guns are killing our young people They are readily available in some neighborhoods You can buy a gun as quickly as you can buy a loaf of bread and when we're talking about Black woman because I'm a black woman. I'm proud to be a black woman 45% of black women who are being killed in America are being killed by gun violence There are over 4.5 million women right now in this country who are alive Who have been threatened with a gun? Whether it's going to the store Whether it's coming from work or whether it's in their own home by an intimate partner and so the availability of guns is what drives gun violence not just mental health but the Availability of guns and this is something we have to address and so Amma is excited to stand side-by-side with mayors against illegal guns and other organizations as we address gun violence in our communities and as we really really take this fight in this argument to deal with the gun industry Who is profiting off of the pain that we're experiencing in our communities day by day? I look forward to our continued work and Let's get to work and let's get it done. No more apologies Well now here from one of the key facilitators of today's summit mayor Quinton Lucas of Kansas City Good afternoon to all of you. I think what you're seeing today from mayors is us declaring Finally ultimately that we are tired of reacting We are tired of reacting to legislatures that aren't willing to do the work to stop gun violence We are tired of waiting for Congress We are tired of looking for solutions whether they be in Washington or our state capitals The solutions will be found in mayor's offices and in cities throughout the country through a few key steps One collaboration is key. That's why we think mayor Adams That's why we think the entire team and set of mayors who are here today Because we know us working together not just among mayors, but federal agencies law enforcement so many others is key to solving this problem Second is transparency When you look at the list to my right, this is not us trying to just say something to call people out What we're very simply saying is these are the facts when somebody is killed They are killed by someone who's using a Glock. They are killed by someone who's using this type of firearm We shouldn't divorce these situations from each other We need to make sure that the stream of firearms coming into our community is stopped And then the third thing in addition to collaboration and transparency that you are hearing from mayors all around the country is action We are taking action against bad actors in the gun industry in my city in New York City in Baltimore and others We're suing those who are involved in illegal trafficking Those who are committing violations of our federal gun laws and state gun laws for that matter We are making sure that they hear from all of us and we are making sure that no matter how long the battle is We will continue to wage it each and every day so our communities can be safer We are tired of our hearts being broken of our community's hearts being broken by every different tragedy And as you've seen around America, although many talk about big cities alone, it's not just us It's small towns. It's suburban communities. It's parades that are interrupted by gun violence Mayors today are saying no more. I'm proud to stand with these organizations I'm proud to stand with every town because we agree that being proactive Say no more taking action and working together is the way that we can turn around this problem so that we no longer have statistics Not like that just not just like what mayor Patterson Howard mentioned But this statistic which is a father breaks my heart that the leading cause of death for our children is firearms I don't want that country for my son. I don't want that city for my son We have to do better and I'm proud that we're committed to doing better. Thank you As you've heard the focus of today's summit was on gun manufacturers and their role in This crisis But in the process of that discussion, we cannot lose sight of or or turn our eyes away from The voices of the victims and of and have guns and have gun violence survivors So we're very fortunate today to have with us Trinnell Gabay Herself a gun violence survivor and the founder of the Carrie Gabay Foundation. Good afternoon Everyone my name is Trinnell Gabay, and I am a survivor of gun violence on September 7 2015 My husband Carrie Gabay left our home to partake in a street festival called Juve Which is an annual celebration that happens Labor Day weekend in Brooklyn, New York As he journeyed through the streets celebrating heritage community and camaraderie Two gang rivals began to have a shootout that resulted in hundreds of bullets fired and my husband being the only victim suffering a fatal gunshot wound to the head Carrie fought for nine days in the hospital and the hardest decision that I had to make in my life Was taking my husband off of life support because he was pronounced brain dead Carrie Gabay was assistant counsel to the New York governor's office at the time of his passing What is ironic is Carrie graph drafted legislation on the New York safe act would set precedent as one of the toughest gun laws in this country in 2013 and Yet his bright light was extinguished by guns It'll be six years this September that I had to bury my husband at 37 years young and Though the wound and the trauma are enduring my story is only one of nearly 400,000 gun violence victims in the past 10 years alone. I Asked myself what we've probably all asked ourselves as Americans watching the mayhem unfold from the inside When are we finally going to do something about it? It's time to strategically figure out this public health crisis once and for all If we capitalize on this moment, it's possible to change the future today Right now we all stand at a crucial inflection point in our country as a nation Do we as a people continue to participate and live in a country where anyone anywhere can be? apathetically killed by a gun and become a statistic or Do we want the change? That has been denied to the American people for almost three decades It'll take action from leaders on all levels to put an end to our gun violence epidemic And I'm grateful to be surrounded by mayors from across the country including my mayor mayor Eric Adams Today who are leading the fight for the change our communities needs and Who gathered here today to strategize and how to hold the gun industry? Accountable for its role in our gun violence epidemic Because for too long, they've been able to operate in the shadows and ignore the consequences of their actions As a survivor of gun violence I know there is so much more work to be done and I'm grateful to be here today to see that in action Now finally we'll hear from the host of today's summit mayor Eric Adams Thank you, and I want to thank miss. Good Bay Remember the day when her husband was murdered and how she has turned pain into purpose and has continued to push a Responsible way of dealing with the overproliferation of guns in our cities across America Today the mayors came together With the energy of collaboration coordination and mobilization and We want clear plans and steps to damn each one of the many rivers That are feeding the gun violence in our cities It was not lost on us. It didn't matter if you were from a southern state or northern state the West Coast or East Coast There was the same issue facing us Too many guns in the hands of too many people carrying out dangerous actions in our cities all of us can exchange Stories of speaking with family members in loved ones Yesterday leaving the crime scene of a 14-year-old child that was shot and speaking with his mother We've heard those cries so often over and over again It's not unique just to our municipalities. It's not unique to our cities Mayors are on the front lines of this crisis. That's facing America And we know that the help must come from every arm of government That includes the new recently appointed head of ATF who will be visiting our city But it also includes our state houses in our local city council chambers It's a collaboration of prosecutors of judges and every arm of the criminal justice system To deal with some of the immediate issues we're facing but also to prevent some of the long-term impacts that are causing some of the violence and Causing young people in particular to continue to participate in violence We believe there are several dams that we must build one social media another hidden hand that Is fueling much of the retaliatory violence and even some of the initial actions To the nine billion dollar industry of gun manufacturers who have made a decision They're going to put profit over our public safety and they have remained removed Removed from the questions. There are no difference Then these cigarette manufacturers of yesteryears Who stated year after year knowing that product produced a dangerous outcome Continued to lie and hide behind the facts. We are not going to allow that to happen anymore Number three, which is just as important We know that we have to share information The transparency of data and information is something that we are agreeing on and we're going to use our local municipalities to share the information of how a gun is born and How it dies and how people die in between that sharing of information has been lost throughout the years The presentation we received today from the local ATF SAC special agent in charge is a starting point for us and we are going to go back through Alma and Also through the United States Conference of Mayors to talk about how do we continue that sharing of if of information? We must have an on all hands on deck moment. That's where we are This epidemic of violence is sweeping our country and in general is hurting every community, but specifically The users of guns and the victims of guns are overwhelmingly black and brown and We cannot ignore the racial element to this epidemic and as mayors Largely mayors of colors who are leading big cities We are not going to ignore the crisis that are in front of us gun violence has Suck the air out of the room of all of the issues. We are facing the prerequisite to prosperity is public safety and justice and The absence of public safety is preventing our cities from moving forward And so I'm proud to be here with these mayors. We talked about this issue over and over again We made the decision to come together and the head of armor Stated that he will co convene with Every town who's helping us with legal aspects as well as data To come with the right partnership that we have not witnessed in the past. It's a combination of government a Private entities as well as responsible manufacturers to do what's right We're going to use our leverage and buying power. We're going to use our bully bull pit We're going to use our legislative arms to attack this problem head on to address the issues of gun violence Guns is a product so consumer product and that product is used for a particular task the clear plan The business model is to get guns in the hands of as many people as possible Guns have a purpose to kill That product is to kill and it is doing What the intended purpose was now we must make sure that intended purpose that product Is not continued to devastate our communities again I want to thank my partners and my fellow mayors that have come from across the country To talk about this similar crisis we're having in our cities That's a great question on one area. We looked at is advertisement One advertisement was on during a Valentine's Day and it alluded to actually using a gun In a domestic violence We're looking at targeting when you have a product you have a sales and marketing team And how do you sell that product? Do you focus on young people? Do you focus on particular groups? Do you focus on people who have mental health illnesses? So we're looking at how will you selling your product? What purpose what would advertisement what is your focus group because as in any product you look to see Who are you going to sell that product to and then? technology of I was mentioned by one of the mayors when iPhones were being stolen and People were taking the passcodes and the outrage came about We are now able to disable those iPhones. Why are we preventing to allow technology to disable guns? Why are they standing in the way of that and why not they are not moving forward to put that? technology in place and so Responsible manufacturers will create a product product that Responsible users can use and this is not a movement to state Responsible gun ownership should not happen. I own three guns This is a movement dealing with illegal guns that are getting in the hands of those who are using them illegally Yeah, I'll just briefly note and a few things with some of the lawsuits that we filed in Kansas City, New York City and Baltimore lay it out There are several actions that industry actors are not taking it violate law first is compliance with federal regulations Making sure that you're actually properly selling reporting sales, etc. And doing necessary background checks A number of producers actually aren't doing those sorts of things sometimes even at the larger level an other area relates to Distribution if you put something out into the market making sure that it's going to good actors Not being used for other means is something that's important an example will be opioid litigation nationwide You saw with that a number of cities another number of jurisdictions actually were able to file suit because those manufacturers were actually making sure that weren't making sure that they weren't going to bad actors that they were going to Pharmacies that were using far more than they needed those types of things are part of it And then finally looking at public nuisance as a theory the fact that a flood of guns whether it be from a distributor or the initial manufacturer can lead to certain harms within communities That's something that we've had in court Surviving a motion to dismiss in my city and we'll look forward to exploring that more American cities along the one You know, I think just the so the list I laid out is some of that discussion I think it's really all of the above actually I mean so we met for five or six hours in connection with it and so to say what the specific suit is We have several of them so far. I think what we're looking at what we can do is how can we work in concert? How can we make sure that there is great pressure on the industry coming not just from a few cities But from all of us saying that enough is enough. I think one of the things that we have to all understand We're talking about gun violence When individuals particularly our youth and our young adults are picking up the guns because it's a lack of hope And so what you've seen across the nation? Many of us mayors have utilized the American Rescue Plan Act dollars to focus on community violence reduction plans Whether that's hospital-based intervention mental health social services things of that nature to ensure that our youth are not picking up a gun And then taking our life and most of times what we're seeing This the crime the gun violence is not The years of yesteryear of the mid 90s What we're seeing now is not as much gang activity not even as much truck and drug activity not to say that It's not that this does not happen. However, we're seeing more acquaintance violence when it comes to that situation and also to a lack of development and Aquaintance violence is I know Mayor Eric Adams and he owes me $20. I go in the middle of a part and say you owe $20 He doesn't like that. He's embarrassed. He comes back. He shoots me in the head I mean that literally happens day in and day out across our nation cities. It's really Unfortunately that simple but yet so complex Yes, thank you so much I think that what we were very clear about today is that it has to be a both-and-approach right For us, we have to do all the things that my my fellow mayor Scott was mentioning on focusing in those communities But when you're talking about this violence that has been in these communities for so long and it's been exacerbated by the pandemic We have to zero in we have to know and use data to see who are the people For a focused deterrence model that are most likely to be the victim of the perpetrators of this violence and focus on them in Every way that means get them in the resource that they need that can change their life But also being there on the other end to say if you do not we are not going to allow you to Terrorize these communities that are overwhelmingly black and brown Continuously and working all together law enforcement all of our service providers every arm of all of our city governments Is the only way because this is not the 1990s This is not something that our police officers are good and just know that someone's going to be mad about someone stealing their Girlfriend off Instagram and someone's going to shoot somebody we have to deal with this on both ends of the spectrum Make sure that we find out where every gun came from and who using it how they got it So everybody from top to bottom can be held accountable That's a great question and we all We all share that You know I say over and over again that gun violence has sucked the oxygen out of the room and When I speak with my colleagues and my fellow mayors and hearing about what they're doing What they're doing around cyber security what they're doing about housing How they deal and with cove it and turn around the economy Was at the top of the mind rightfully of our constituency is the violence is the violence and This it takes an emotional toll when Every other night. You're at a hospital seeing another family member of when you stop at these crime scenes and you See the blood on a sidewalk And you know that you have to attend that funeral You know throughout my entire seven months in office. I started off With I'm having two offices slain of you know officer Rivera and Mora You know people say well, you know, the honeymoon is over. I was never married, you know, we did was it was a battle from the beginning It was a never a honeymoon We never had a date where we were able to just continue to highlight the success that we've been having and So all of these mayors we live this every day Our foams are going off every day In our city and our cities and so we believe that You know this we have to get this under control and we're laser Focus on getting this under control. That is what of what we're saying what we're saying today The information sharing is crucial We had a great presentation as I stated from the special agent in charge of the ATF here and He rolled out How we could utilize information sharing within our cities for far too long of Washington through Congress has gotten in the way of ATF sharing information There's a way we can do it now within our cities by having an Information sharing agreement that we I learned because we're doing it here in the state with Governor Huckle and now We are going to empower our fellow mayors is something specific that they're going to take back and by having that Information sharing we can trace that gun. We could trace the person who purchased that gun To see if there was a history of him or her purchasing guns how we can get How it arrived on our streets that information sharing is crucial It allows us to get ahead of the problem and by having this centralized database of showing where did the shooting happen? Who purchased that gun? What was the gun stolen from? How many other shootings that gun was involved in and what cities or state was in it wasn't involved in? This is a major major of new weapon that we are going to use in dealing with gun violence It's something that has not been used for the most part before This is really the first time We started here in New York State and we're looking to partner with all of our mayors to do the same thing This is this would allow us to bypass Whatever restrictions are done on a federal level it will allow us to do it on cities by cities Where we see it and it's it's an unbelievable opportunity for us to go after the shooters the guns the manufacturers the illegal dealers of guns particularly the Secondhand dealers and it really is it's it is empowering us with a new tool that was not used before and We cannot overestimate How good this new tool is and in the legal minds are better than I to come up with the exact theory But there is a one part of the if you remember the cigarette case of those smoking gun memos I'm sure if you start looking in desk drawers and using the power of You know subpoenas. I'm sure you're going to find information on how particular groups were targeted knowingly targeting a group that is using guns In a harmful way The legal minds are going to going to sit down our chief counsel is going to meet with others to find out exactly What laws of civilly that we believe are violated that continues to feed This violence that we're seeing and so that's the job of the attorneys. We're open to get it done With the information sharing. This is the first time the the mayor's here have heard the presentation The head of Alma we're going to present it to all the other mayor's of the African-american mayors Association. I'm going to speak with the head of the US mayors conference of mayors of the Miami's mayor and We're going to start the process of trying to get as many cities as possible to sign on and Right It's already on and so the governor was allowed us to do it here within the state This is the first state that it is statewide But the goal is to get as many mayors in as possible And this is this was some first time hearing about this ability to do the tracing It's we we we what we did today. We started with the group of mayors who are departing to catch flights Because you know, you can't be out of your city too long You know, we started with Coming with a game plan we listed those dam those rivers we want to dam now We're going to break off into groups to make sure that we put those processes in place You know, and we're going to circle back with a formal formidable plan That's going to include a multitude of things we want to do as different man as different mayors That's going to be a combination going to be a combination of using illegal apparatus apparatus our law makers Using technology. So there's a combination of things that we're going to do Today was to sit down and get armed with information and we're going to continue to follow up. This is not a one and done This is something that we're laser focused on Everything is on the table. Everything is on the table and we're not leaving anything off the table of those are some of the things that came up today in the conversation if you were to look at Topeka, Kansas Saying I'm not going to buy for you from you People would be dismissive of that But if you take all of our mayors of our large cities and start engaging in a conversation about our buying power People are going to look closely at that and those are part of the conversations we had today Yeah, I think that we we've done it is actually one of the first things I did is work with every town and our folks who create this at this now two of its kind a data Data system and what we've seen is our ability to track and I think it's important for folks to know It's not just about the guns, but also the bullets to track every single solitary one of them We have been able to bring gun trafficking cases We had a big one last summer with a gentleman who had 40 of these polymer 80 Ability to create them and other weapons and we're going to continue to do that Work on if our local federal partners work on file state partners because it is important for us to again Do this on every aspect focusing in on those folks that we know are committing those acts of violence and holding them accountable But also the people that are Fueling these guns so we provided the data today that over 60% of the guns that we sees in the city of Baltimore come from other states Right and over 80% of the guns that we sees in Baltimore come from either other counties in Maryland and other states combined So we have to understand that gun trafficking straw purchasing is something that is driving Violence in cities around the country and the only way that we're going to get at that is if we start to hold people accountable in that way Absolutely we So I'll give you I'll give you if you think about not even just gun cases when you think about folks that are Being shot right we actually had a police officer shot officer a Keanu Haley and we're able to see that in that case There was two two back-to-back murders where we know that the same gun was used We knew that because we're able to trace that data and when you're actually using the partnership to go through in any Cases to go through and see that oh this weapon that was using this shooting or this Discharging is also related to this murder is also related to this non-fatal shooting It makes your case stronger that not just that individual that individual to hold it Obviously, it's gonna commit multiple acts of violence But then as we heard today and said today that we got to go deeper How did that gun get into this person's hands and who did it come from? No, no, I think that Nolan's question was a good question in fact that as as we were talking about Closing these cases. You have a person that purchases a gun four guns in Alabama. He comes up to New York Those guns are used in crimes And then we start tracking we noticed that why is every gun he goes back down purchase eight more Why is every gun this person is purchasing constantly find its way on the street? Without sharing the information you're not connecting him to the shootings that took place and We can't stop him from purchasing, but when you knock on that door and notice 12 of the guns you purchase they all happen to be stolen and they all used in in crimes now We are watching you, you know, that's what that information sharing allows us to do We have been fighting this alone, you know We've been believing that hey my city is having a problem now it's coming together We're realizing that our cities are having a problem and we're no longer fighting this alone in silos That's and that is that is what this new weapon that we have exactly what you just stated Got a gun was used in a homicide in the 4-4 precinct We now would be able to trace the entire life of that gun the ballistics We're shooting it was involved in who purchased that gun who else had that gun? So we are now going to be armed with information not only here in New York State But with the information sharing agreement that gun could have been used in Alabama now We can connect who purchased hot where that gun was stolen from we may find someone that Purchase for guns all your guns were stolen from your car the same report the same things Something is wrong. So this is the first time that we are going to have the ability of not having to wait on the ATF We're now going to have the ability as mayors to share our information Now we want the ATF, but we are empowered now We're no longer standing by waiting and now that data that we get from that serial number is Going all that rest that we make is going to allow us to connect the entire life of that gun That's a huge huge weapon. We have we now having our arsenal Yes, yes Thank you. Thank you Thank you All right, see you soon Yeah Good question I Want to be clear I am not of the mindset that People who are responsible gun owners for responsible reasons should not Be prevented from owning a gun. I own three guns. I go do target Shooting and so that is not what I am saying and I don't believe that's what we're hearing from our mayors It is the illegal guns is targeting if your Business model and business plan is to target people who Are not suitable to carry a gun Then that's a problem and I think gun manufacturers could be more responsible our automobiles had to Change things to make it safer if we take the we take the laws that are currently in place for gun manufacturers That prevent them from being scrutinized As we heard in one Florida law that they are attempting to pass you cannot even question Gun manufacturers at all unless you are liable for a substantial Penalty and one case we heard from one mayor stated that if you If a person believes you are I think was st. Louis if a person believe you Violated their second amendment right and your police officer you take their gun for some reason you could be sued for $50,000 per case and so when you look at these different barriers to Have responsible gun ownership. This is what we're going after we're going after The irresponsible actions are putting illegal guns on our street. This is not a battle against Responsible gun ownership. This is not what this battle is about. It is the over-proliferation of illegal guns and the behaviors of manufacturers and Just everything has evolved in our country But gun safety that's the only thing that has not evolved and if we would have had used the same Methods we would still have camel selling cigarettes. We would still say children should not wear seatbelts and car seats We would still have all of these other products that were regulated If we would have remained and didn't regulate those products, they would have been taken lives We have not regulated guns in our country, which is remarkable when you think about it yes, yep, so the theory by which we Initiated our recent lawsuit against five ghost gun manufacturers was under public nuisance theory That is the that is the legal theory. There's both a public nuisance statute There's also a common law that has developed with respect to public nuisance And what that essentially says is you can't create a set of conditions that are unhealthy to the public And if you do so you may be liable and those have those those have been used broadly in many different ways They've been used with in with respect to many different types of conduct over history by local local governments So that is one of the tried and true Paths there may be other paths as well where we're exploring as the mayor has said everything is on the table But public nuisance right now forms the core of the strategy. That's the that's that's the legal term of art If that's what you're getting it Oh No, I think that's who never told you that whoever's leaking of you know, I mean We have a meeting nowadays people tweeting right from the meeting, you know Adrian and I have been talking since Before the budget was passed. We have been talking We have not stopped talking about this issue and some other issues Around this. She's a great partner. There is no agreement That's why if something happened while I was in this meeting, I'm not aware of it And I think I'm the last person to say if there's an agreement or not I've had fruitful conversations with the speaker of About how do we deal with the crises that we're having in education around a decrease in enrollment Enrollment and some other real financial crises. And so whatever we do we have to keep that in mind And these are tough decisions, you know, but that's what is expected You know, I have to make tough decisions to make sure that as we deal with this economic crisis Our city is facing of that we make the right decision But to answer directly as of this time There is there is no deal that was made of That Everyone talks about this these federal dollars Chris would they not understand that these federal dollars are going to run out And so if the federal dollars run out and we keep pretending as though Those federal dollars are always going to be there and we're not getting money from from Albany Then all we're doing is is trying to deny the reality that we're facing and it goes of those federal COVID dollars are going to run out But we even have an even a bigger problem because of our decrease in enrollment the federal government may change the funding that we receive and and It may sound good as a good sound bite that people are making But it would be irresponsible if I ignore the real crises We're having in school Funding and I can't do that because then I'm setting up our city for failure in the future So we have to be smart. We have to make the right decisions and it's not going to be the popular decisions But we have to make the right financial decisions Right right good question so here here is what we have been talking about we being city hall is that There are dollars that are out there that are restricted dollars that may say you could only use it on Some typical program during COVID you could only use it on on on COVID prevention and so if there's a way to alleviate those restrictions and say that you know what you instead of only using on COVID prevention You could use it on an after-school program that you want. I think there's flexibility to do that You know, they are no new dollars, you know, they are new no new dollars It's about relieving some of the restrictions on dollars that were allocated already because principles are given funding to run their schools and some of that funding is earmarked for specific reason and if we could come up with a way of saying Instead of you just having to use it on that specific reason that you could use it for something else that you want to free you Free you up. That's the conversation we could have but there is if people are saying are you going to find $250 million. No, there's no $250 million to find Yes, well, you know, I said it today. I don't know who I said might sent me an article that were that was written on this You know, it's the mindset those crimes you're talking about I think Commissioner Sewell did an amazing job of showing the duplication of the offenders, you know You know catch release Repeat I mean, what kind of criminal justice system is that? You making a wrestle Monday for grand larceny. The person is out on Tuesday. He does it again on Thursday And it's it is as though why the numbers are going up because the catch Release repeat these guys are saying this criminal justice system is a joke They're saying we can do this as much as we want you got some of these guys that are Arrested over and over and over again. And so you have the police officer out there, you know officer John I Arrested him then officer John is on his beat on Tuesday, and he says, what are you doing out already? How do you fight against that we are making the arrest We are doing our there's a there's a relationship in this deal The relationship is hey police officer make a rest then the other relationship is prosecute prosecute judge make the determination someone should stay in or not and Laws make sure people don't get out already like this is there's a relationship to public safety And I'm saying that far too many people are not fulfilling their relationship But we're going to continue to go after John does a burglary We're going to lock him up John does a grand larceny. We're going to lock him up We're going to continue to do our role, but everyone else must do their role That's what That's what the commissioner that's what the commissioner does and you know what we're going to continue and I'm glad you raised that We're going to continue to highlight that we're going to continue to highlight how many Repeated offenders we have because I think that if I have one failure I believe we failed out at we failed to really show the public How much these laws and actions are hurting our public safety people's tend to believe okay? Grand larcenies have gone up. What are you doing about it police commissioner? What are you doing about it mayor because they don't realize how many arrests we're making in these areas and how many repeated offenders? I'll go and back out after we make make arrests I cannot I cannot articulate to you clear enough how there's a body of people in this city that Do not take us Seriously about crime-fighting. They just they just feel as though you telling us that breaking the law is A bad thing but every time we do it and nothing happens to us That's just you can't run the city that way and you can't have it with your criminal justice partners Don't see the urgency on the ground that we're seeing everything But we're doing everything from illegal use of license plates to those who are repeated of individuals who still is stores to the Motorcycles that we're going after and their ATVs that are illegal. We're dealing with these quality of life issues But hey if if I you know take that motorcycle or that ATV and crush it And then you're able to get another one and do something dangerous and there's no repercussion It just sends the wrong message. We're sending the wrong message For for those who want to do harm in our city. It's just a small number. That's the strangest thing about it We're not talking about the overwhelming number of New Yorkers are doing what's right a small number of people have Hijacked our city, but we're gonna keep going after them. We're not going to give up. We're never going to become daunted We're going to stay focused until everyone else catches up with us. Thank you