[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 128 (Thursday, September 20, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1582]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    NEIL GODLESKI AND SUZANNE MURPHY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. TIMOTHY H. BISHOP

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 20, 2012

  Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the tragic 
passing of Neil Godleski, nephew of my friend and constituent Suzanne 
Murphy of Southampton, New York. Neil, a rising senior at Catholic 
University, was fatally shot on August 22, 2010 while riding his 
bicycle home from a restaurant where he worked as a waiter. He was 31 
years old and had returned to college with plans to pursue a career in 
science. His assailant was a 16-year-old boy who shot him six times 
with a .38 caliber handgun and then robbed him.
  Suzanne's family has been wrenched with grief over the sudden end of 
this young man's life. More than 200 people attended his funeral in his 
hometown of Norwalk, Connecticut, and many others gathered at a 
candlelight vigil for him in his Washington, DC neighborhood of 
Petworth.
  While no vigil or memorial could ever begin to take away the pain of 
this loss, Suzanne has found a way to channel her grief and focus her 
energy. She has become an advocate for gun control, becoming part of a 
movement declaring the need to seek a new path emphasizing gun safety 
at a time when one in three Americans knows someone who has been shot 
In an average year, around 100,000 Americans are killed or wounded with 
guns.
  Columbine, Virginia Tech, Trayvon Martin, and the recent episode in 
Aurora, Colorado are senseless tragedies still fresh in our minds that 
point to the need for responsible policies that protect all Americans 
from gun violence but also preserve the right afforded citizens by the 
Second Amendment. Reasonable people can agree that we can achieve even-
handed protections that do not infringe on any American's right to 
possess a firearm.
  Efforts to curb the influx of dangerous weapons into our communities, 
restrictions on assault-type weapons and high-capacity ammunition 
magazines, and policies on handguns are the types of actions Congress 
can take to protect our communities from gun violence. We must also 
equip local law enforcement officers with the tools needed to keep guns 
out of the hands of criminals and others who wish to do our sons and 
daughters harm.
  Unfortunately, Suzanne Murphy and her family have experienced first-
hand the tragic pain and loss that comes to a family in a shooting 
death. At Catholic University, Neil was a teaching assistant to his 
biology professor. The professor told Suzanne that one of Neil's jobs 
was to keep an eye out for other students having trouble mastering the 
material. Neil especially liked tutoring and helping his fellow 
classmates. After his death, Catholic University awarded Neil his 
diploma with his class of 2011. His parents, Dan and Heidi Godleski, 
gratefully accepted it on his behalf
  Mr. Speaker, I applaud Suzanne's efforts to reach out and bring 
awareness to the problem of gun safety. We must not let her nephew 
become just another chilling statistic in the battle to make our 
communities safer--leaving another family struggling to get past the 
pain and loss.