ALBANY, N.Y. -- “Two months ago, a stray bullet came in my front window,” said Allah Sun’Allah, a West Hill resident.
Sun'Allah lives in West Hill and it was just a block away from where 10-year-old Kathina Thomas was shot that his sister Glenda Pam Jones was hit and killed by a stray bullet in 2003.
This is my community, this is my neighborhood. My kids deserve to come outside and play on the front stairs,” Sun’Allah said.
Albany's Common Council heard from people across the city for the first time since Thomas' death. People told the council the neighborhoods like West Hill need more cops on foot patrol, more programs for kids. They also say more needs to be done to stop the flow of illegal guns into the city.
The first Common Council meeting since Kathina Thomas was shot brought people from across the city to Albany City Hall. And as Curtis Schick reports, people want change to happen now.
“These are not accidents. There is a climate of illegal use of illegal handguns in the city of Albany. This has been going on for years,” said Leonard Morganvesser, an Albany resident.
“We need the community to say this is what I am able to do to save my neighborhood,” said Councilman Corey Ellis.
Ellis say neighborhoods like West Hill need more programs for kids and more parks, but that will only make the community so safe.
“What makes the community safe is a partnership with the police, a partnership with nosey neighbor, a partnership with the elected official, a partnership with everyone, when violence happens the community can be proactive,” Ellis said.
And in a community where poverty is great, will whatever the council does make a difference? Only time will tell.