Editorial | State of emergency

After a brief lull, the crime epidemic that swept into the Philadelphia summer has returned, stronger than ever. Conditions are bad, and they seem to be worsening.

Murders citywide have risen to a mind-boggling 334 so far this year.

And the victims? Many have simply been bystanders. On Monday, 49-year-old Lanise Saunders was stabbed to death inside her home. She cleaned houses for a living and had two daughters.

Most victims, however, have come at the hand of guns, like a five-year-old girl shot in the city's Strawberry Mansion district. She was killed while riding in the backseat of a car; police attribute the death to a drug-related turf war.

Despite rallying calls and police crackdowns, the violence seems to have no end in sight. Homicides are up 15 percent over last year, compared to a 1.3-percent increase in violent crime nationally. And don't think for a second that Penn can ignore the violence all around it.

Penn students and staff live and work in all parts of Philadelphia. And as goes Philadelphia, so goes Penn - we don't live in a bubble.

As The Philadelphia Inquirer reported, hotels are already worrying about the epidemic's effect on hotel visits. Violent crime may have a similar effect on prospective students and parents already worried about college kids in a big city.

Luckily, someone has a solution: Former City Councilman and mayoral hopeful Michael Nutter has called on the city to declare a state of emergency in the hardest-hit areas. Such an action would allow police to perform targeted sweeps of illegal firearms, install video surveillance cameras, establish curfews and close bars early.

Similar steps have been taken in Oakland, Calif., Jackson, Miss., and New York City. How many more Philadelphians have to die before the city takes action as well? How many before the "trend" becomes an "emergency?"

Without drastic action, this wave of violence won't end anytime soon.

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