A SUBURBAN Philadelphia city has declared a state of emergency in response to a spate of violent incidents, which included four killings in eight days.
The state of emergency took effect at 9.00pm Saturday in Chester, Pennsylvania and will run until at least Thursday morning, ABC News affiliate WPVI reported.
From 9.00pm to 6.00am each day in five areas of the city, no person will be allowed on the streets without a legitimate reason, and no group of more than three people will be allowed to assemble without a permit.
The state of emergency was announced by the city’s mayor Wendell Butler Jr. after another murder on Saturday morning, the fourth murder in the area in eight days.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the struggling city of 37,000 people may be extended later this week for another 30 days.
Police Chief Floyd Lewis said so far this year, there have been 11 homicides in the city, which included a two-year-old who was shot through the closed door of his family’s home last Sunday.
The mayor said he was hoping for help from additional state troopers and federal law enforcement agents, plus he wants to hire more police officers and will seek approval from the City Council for a gun buyback program.
Be the first to comment