[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 25 (Tuesday, February 8, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H1017-H1018]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    GUN VIOLENCE IS RUNNING RAMPANT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Espaillat) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ESPAILLAT. Madam Speaker, I rise today because my district is 
hurting. Washington Heights-Inwood is

[[Page H1018]]

hurting because they saw how Officer Jason Rivera was taken away from 
us. A 22-year old son of Inwood was taken away from us by gun violence 
when he responded to a family dispute.
  But Harlem also is hurting because both Officers Rivera and Mora 
patrolled the 32nd precinct in Harlem, and they were both brutally shot 
and killed in the village of Harlem.
  Madam Speaker, East Harlem is hurting because we saw how a young 
woman, Kristal Bayron-Nieves, who worked in a Burger King, was shot and 
killed. Even though she gave the money from the register to the person 
that held up the Burger King at gunpoint, she was still brutally shot 
and killed--19 years old.
  Madam Speaker, finally, the Bronx part of my district is also hurting 
because an 11-month-old child, just before she turned 1, sat in the car 
with her mother and was shot in the face. All of this happened within 
two weeks of each other.
  So my district is hurting as we bury these two young police officers, 
22 and 27 years old, of Dominican heritage, the first in their family 
to serve the Police Department. So gun violence is running rampant. And 
we see how many talk about law and order, but when it comes to gun 
violence, they are still in the pocket of the NRA; and they won't dare 
challenge the NRA.
  So I rise because my district is hurting. And we are supportive of 
Mayor Adams' plan of precision policing, which has identified 700 
people that have been involved in 1,700 acts of violence involving an 
illegal weapon. We understand that much more has to be invested in ATF; 
so we cut off the iron pipeline that brings weapons to the corner of my 
district from South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. But we also 
have to invest 50 million in summer youth jobs. We have to invest more 
money to have the violence interrupters be part of the resolution of 
this violence ripping our communities across the country.
  We must all work together to resolve this epidemic of gun violence. 
We must pass the package of gun laws that we have here on this floor, 
including ghost guns, which continue to play an increased role in the 
death of people across the country, circumventing background checks and 
other restrictions that must be put in place to keep guns away from 
people's hands.

  Madam Speaker, I urge my House colleagues to join me today for a 
minute of silence in the memory of Officer Rivera and Officer Mora. And 
in support of their two families, we join them, and we will always be 
by their side.
  Madam Speaker, I ask for a minute of silence.

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