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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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CONTACT: Jay Purdy PHONE: 717-787-7895 Email: jpurdy@pahouse.net |
State Rep. Thomas
Caltagirone |
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Caltagirone announces statewide hearings on crime, violence and gun legislation
11 hearings to be held in Berks County, Erie, Pittsburgh, Scranton and Philadelphia
HARRISBURG Feb. 1 -- State House Judiciary Committee Chairman Thomas Caltagirone, D-Reading, today announced the panel will hold a series of hearings across the Commonwealth to get citizen input on issues and proposed legislation related to crime, violence and gun policies.
“The chorus of voices asking the legislature to take action and address crime, violence, drugs and guns grows louder each day,” said Caltagirone, who recently was named Judiciary Committee chairman by the House Democratic leadership. “I want the Judiciary Committee to do more than hold hearings on individual pieces of legislation; I want the committee members to have a broad understanding of these issues. And I want us to hear directly from people around Pennsylvania about how these issues impact their communities.”
Caltagirone said that the hearings, in Berks County, Erie, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Scranton, will culminate in April with a final major policy hearing in Harrisburg. The statewide hearings will give people from various interest groups the opportunity to be heard by the committee.
“We have no interest in stacking these hearings in favor of one constituency or another,” Caltagirone said. “During the Committee of the Whole that was held in the fall, members from both sides of the aisle presented worthwhile proposals that ranged from putting more police on the streets to investing in long-term preventative solutions. As I see it, the only way we can stop the violence plaguing our communities is to start looking for practical common-sense solutions.”
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Dwight Evans, D-Phila., was the driving force behind the Committee of the Whole, a three-day session devoted to a discussion of legislation and ideas to address crime and violence. It was the first time in a decade that the legislature took a serious look at the issues.
Evans applauded Caltagirone for his decision to hold hearings in Philadelphia and around the Commonwealth.
“People like to say crime and violence are urban problems or a Philadelphia problem,” Evans said. “That’s simply not true. The anecdotal evidence and the statistics show that crime, especially as it relates to illegal handguns and drugs, is impacting all of our communities. I hear from mayors every day who say, ‘please help us solve this problem.’ I am pleased that Representative Caltagirone has stepped forward to help raise the dialogue.”
The hearings have been scheduled on the following dates:
- Feb. 9, Northeast Philadelphia;
- Feb. 16, Northwest Philadelphia;
- March 16, Scranton;
- March 23, South Philadelphia;
- March 27, Erie;
- March 28, Pittsburgh;
- March 29, suburban Philadelphia;
- March 30, West Philadelphia;
- April 13, North Philadelphia;
- April 20, Philadelphia City Hall; and
- April 27, Harrisburg.
Times and locations will be announced shortly.
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