Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Delusional City Leadership – Criminals Are Making Our Cities Safer!

Monday, August 7, 2023

Delusional City Leadership –  Criminals Are Making Our Cities Safer!

In much the same way that shoplifting has become “shopping” in progressive-run cities and gun control is rebranded as “responsible solutions,” one of the left’s approaches to public safety is funding ex-cons and felons to quell crime.

A recent alert highlighted a problem with non-traditional policing alternatives to public safety that employ “violence interrupters” or “community safety ambassadors.” Rather than helping to fight crime, the “peacekeepers” were, in some cases, actually contributing to it. Based on a random selection of news reports, violence interrupters have been “accused of illegally possessing guns while they were out on bond… for illegally possessing guns” (Chicago), “charged with unlawful use of a weapon, heroin possession, and possession of a controlled substance after police allegedly found a loaded pistol and bags of suspected crack cocaine and heroin” (Chicago), accused of destroying evidence linked to a murder (St. Louis, MO), and sentenced to 17 years in jail for a strangling (Louisville, KY). While the “premise of the whole ‘peacekeeper’ program may be that those hired for the role likely have a criminal past” (and thus, street cred), the alert advised that “the vetting process to ensure future ‘peacekeepers’ have truly abandoned their criminal ways is in need of being refined.”

How true.

It seems a “violence interrupter” for New York City has been interrupted in more than just his activism. Several news outlets have reported that Michael Rodriguez, 48, described as a “director of a Bronx anti-violence program listed as part of Mayor Eric Adams’ plan to curb shootings,” has been arrested, along with more than a dozen others, in a huge drug and gun bust.

The arrests follow a lengthy investigation (“Operation Hide in Plain Sight”) of a narcotics trafficking network by Orange County, NY law enforcement. “Officials say they found over 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, $165,509 in United States currency, scales, a money counter, an unlicensed Ruger .380 caliber pistol, an unlicensed Bond Arms .357 caliber handgun, a vacuum sealer, digital scales and jewelry estimated to have a value of approximately $50,000 in [Rodriguez’s] Westchester County home.” Charges against him reportedly include, besides the drug and conspiracy counts, felony charges for criminal possession of firearms.

Rodriguez’s organization, “Bronx Rises Against Gun Violence” (BRAG), works to “promote safer streets” and deploys violence interrupters as part of that mission. BRAG was one of the entities listed as a “community partner” in Mayor’s Adams’ “Blueprint to End Gun Violence” (2022), “a plan for action towards removing guns from New York City streets to protect communities and create a safe, prosperous city.” BRAG “partnered with students in anti-gun environment or A.G.E to speak against gun violence” in May, and was included as a partner in the NYC anti-gun “March for Our Lives,” for which the “the lion’s share of the support” and funding was provided by Michael Bloomberg’s Everytown gun-control conglomerate.   

Of course, a criminal charge is only an allegation that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law and is not evidence of guilt; all defendants are presumed innocent until convicted in a court of law. Law enforcement officials commenting on the arrest, though, had plenty to say about an ostensible crusader against crime being an accused drug kingpin. “So the very guy that we have that’s supposed to be stopping gun violence in one jurisdiction in New York City is poisoning our jurisdiction up here,” noted Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler. In a similar vein, Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark stated, “The allegations of drug trafficking and gun possession against Michael Rodriguez are shocking and disturbing, especially since he has attended anti-violence events and peace marches portraying himself as someone who cares about stopping the violence in our community. These charges are the exact opposite of the good work cure violence groups are doing.”

This latest episode is reminiscent of what happened with Bloomberg’s “starter” gun control group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG). For years, its member local government officials were notorious for how often they were charged with or convicted of crimes, including firearm violations. By 2013, “roiled by constant reports of criminal behavior by members, MAIG was subsumed into Bloomberg’s new gun control entity, Everytown,” and stopped listing its individual members by name.  

The New York Post’s editorial board may have stated the obvious in a piece titled, “NYC needs cops, not violence interrupters.” Pointing to the city’s appalling crime statistics – total felonies are up by 39% since 2021 and murders are now 40% above 2019 levels – it describes government outreach to such groups as an empty political gesture, one that is “less than useless for actual public safety” given that the “available statistical evidence to date suggests ‘interruption’ programs do very little, if anything, to drive down crime rates.” The “absurd-as-it-is-tragic arrest” of Rodriguez is simply “another sign of the lunacy of lefty policies.” As for gung-ho gun-control advocate Mayor Eric Adams (who is, incidentally, a “co-chair” of MAIG), the “Rodriguez absurdity should serve as a turning point on how much theater Adams will tolerate as he tries to make New York safe again.”

IN THIS ARTICLE
crime New York City
TRENDING NOW
Reported ATF Email Sparks Concerns of Braced Pistol Crackdown

News  

Monday, January 13, 2025

Reported ATF Email Sparks Concerns of Braced Pistol Crackdown

On Friday, Gun Owners of America published an email reportedly received by one of its members in response to a question to ATF about whether adding a brace to a CZ Scorpion pistol would convert ...

Washington: Ammo Tax Added to Tuesday’s Onslaught of Anti-Gun Bills

Saturday, January 18, 2025

Washington: Ammo Tax Added to Tuesday’s Onslaught of Anti-Gun Bills

This coming Tuesday is going to be a critical day for law-abiding gun owners across Washington, with three separate hearings scheduled to review anti-gun legislation. 

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Introduced on First Day of Session

Thursday, January 9, 2025

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Introduced on First Day of Session

Without skipping a beat, anti-gun legislators in Colorado have introduced a near all-encompassing ban on semi-automatic firearms on the first day of the legislative session.

Washington: The Expedited Assault on Your Rights Continues! Hearings Scheduled for Tuesday!

Friday, January 17, 2025

Washington: The Expedited Assault on Your Rights Continues! Hearings Scheduled for Tuesday!

In just the second week of the session, the Washington State legislature continues their assault on your right to keep and bear arms. 

Illinois: Gun Seizure Mandate Passes House, Headed to Governor's Desk

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

Illinois: Gun Seizure Mandate Passes House, Headed to Governor's Desk

Last night, HB 4144 passed the Illinois House by a vote of 80-33 in the final hours of the General Assembly’s lame duck session. It now goes to the Governor for his signature.

Washington: 2025 Legislative Session Convenes, Gun Control Bills Pre-Filed

Monday, January 13, 2025

Washington: 2025 Legislative Session Convenes, Gun Control Bills Pre-Filed

Today, January 13th, the Washington Legislature convened for the 2025 session. 

Urge Congress to Protect Your Right to Carry – Contact Your Member of Congress Today!

News  

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

Urge Congress to Protect Your Right to Carry – Contact Your Member of Congress Today!

Dear NRA Member: U.S. Representative Richard Hudson (R-NC) has reintroduced the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act (H.R. 38). Representative Hudson, the longstanding champion of this legislation, along with more than 120 of his colleagues have ...

Good News, Bad News on ATF Director Dettelbach

News  

Monday, January 6, 2025

Good News, Bad News on ATF Director Dettelbach

It’s really just good news to report that Joe Biden’s director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Steven Dettelbach, has announced his resignation.  

U.S. Appellate Court Issues Case on Marijuana Use and Firearm Possession

News  

Monday, January 13, 2025

U.S. Appellate Court Issues Case on Marijuana Use and Firearm Possession

Last Monday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit – which encompasses Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas – reversed the conviction of a man under a federal law that prohibits firearm possession by one ...

Maine: Governor Mills Proposes Major Cost Increases to Hunting, Fishing, and Archery License Fees

Friday, January 17, 2025

Maine: Governor Mills Proposes Major Cost Increases to Hunting, Fishing, and Archery License Fees

The NRA recently warned Mainers that progressive politicians were zeroing in on their hunting rights, and this week, Maine hunters got their first look at the anti-hunting policies coming their way in 2025. 

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.