Gun Violence in Buffalo Has Taken 20 Lives So Far This Year

There has been a significant increase in gun-related crime in urban centers all across the country this year and Buffalo is proving to be no exception to this.

According to a report by WKBW-TV, we're already seen more gun-related homicides in 2021 than in 2020. This large increase in violence is causing a lot of stress throughout the city.

Investigative Reports from Channel 7 were able to obtain a series of reports from the Buffalo Police Department that details how bad things have been in the first 3 months of the year. There have been at least 72 people that have suffered gunshot wounds in the city, with 20 of those people died as a result of their injuries. That represents a tremendous increase from last year when only 36 people were shot during the whole year.

We’re not being protected here in this community. There’s only so much anti-violence groups can do... We have far too many weapons on our city streets.
-James Giles, Pastor and Leader of the Buffalo Peacemakers

There continues to be an issue with illegal guns throughout New York State. A few months back during the WBLK 'Put The Guns Down and Power Up' Town Hall, we had a frank discussion with Neal Dobbins, Founder of the Most Valuable Parents Buffalo, about one specific thing that we could do to help limit the number of illegal weapons that flow nto our cities and towns. You can listen to what he said here.

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I still don't know yet what we can do as a community to solve this, but I do know that if we work together we can come up with a solution.

Police detectives are actively seeking details to help solve these 72 shootings. If you know anything, they really could use your help. Please call or text the Buffalo Police confidential tip line at (716) 847-2255.