Martial Law

It's kind of hard to tell.

In a week marked by Philadelphia's 300th homicide of the year, Democratic mayoral candidate Michael Nutter said Mayor Street should declare a state of emergency in pockets of the city that have endured the worst violence.

Such action, according to the city code, would allow the government to clear people from public sidewalks, close bars, prohibit liquor sales, and establish curfews for children and adults alike.

Here are some facts about Philly's murder rate from Wikipedia.

Murders peaked at 503 in 1990, for a rate of 31.5 per 100,000, and they averaged around 400 a year for most of the nineties. In 2002 the murder count hit a low of 288, but by 2005 the annual total had surged to 380, for a rate of 25.85 per 100,000.

Michael Nutter came to the City Council in 1991, yet there were no calls for a "State of Emergency" until he decides to run for Mayor. It would be cynical to say that Michael Nutter didn't consider it "a problem" then, but it makes you wonder.

(tip to Chris)

Pennsylvania Posted by AlexC at October 6, 2006 6:27 PM