Phoenix police launch ‘Gun Crime Crackdown’ to combat gun violence

A gun “crime crackdown” program will come to Phoenix this summer on the heels of the mass shooting that killed a 14-year-old girl, Phoenix police Chief Jeri Williams announced at a Wednesday news conference.

At Phoenix police headquarters, Williams stood on a podium bookended by images of faces of those shot and killed over the last few months in Phoenix. They represented the reason behind the summer operation, Williams said.

“Looking at the faces on the two posters in front of you, each one of them is a victim of gun violence, and just imagine the number of lives that have been impacted by their losses,” Williams said. “Plain and simple, we have to do something.”

One of the images was of Emily Morgan, 14, who was killed during the June 4 mass shooting near Hatcher Road and 10th Avenue in north Phoenix. Eight others were also injured in that shooting.

Her parents, Gabe and Jennifer Keely, spoke about how the loss of their daughter to gun violence has impacted them, while urging the community to help them obtain justice.

“Most definitely not what we had planned for our lives, and for (Emily),” Gabe Keely said. “Not for her little sister, her older sister, her brother or the many friends and family that unfortunately won’t be able to watch her grow.”

“Operation Gun Crime Crackdown” aims to prevent similar tragedies across the city, Williams said, describing the operation as a multiagency and multifaceted effort, meaning that both federal and state agencies would be involved with the Phoenix Police Department’s enforcement.

“Together with the ATF, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the community, Phoenix PD is going to be laser-focused on curbing the recent rise in gun crimes in our city,” Williams said.

‘Operation Gun Crime Crackdown’

Williams said that the department will “deploy resources” all over the city. The operation also involves assigning 10 detectives to precincts they see as having “the highest gun related crimes,” the department said in a news release.

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Those include South Mountain, Maryvale Estrella Mountain, Cactus Park, Mountain View and Desert Horizon, according to Williams.

Supervisors from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office also will be assigned to work with precincts….