Meeting of Mayors and Police Chiefs, Strategies to Reduce Gun Violence in Cities

More than 50 mayors, law enforcement leaders, and policy officials will meet April 9-10 at the Renaissance Toledo Downtown Hotel to share strategies on reducing gun violence. The U.S. Conference of Mayors is organizing the two-day event.

“Gun violence is a serious problem that will never be solved if we are afraid to talk about it,” Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz said. “Congress is afraid to talk about this, and since they are unwilling to fix the problem, mayors from across the country will work together to identify common sense policies that will make our cities safer.”

There will be a full day of sessions on Wednesday, April 10. Topics for the conference include gun-purchasing restrictions, encouraging gun-owner responsibility, and using technology as a tool for gun violence reduction and prevention. The sessions are not open to the media or the public. There will be a news conference for credentialed media at 12:45 p.m., April 10 in the Prism Room at the hotel.

The mayors attending include:

• Steve Benjamin, Mayor of Columbia, SC and President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors
• David Berger, Mayor of Lima, Ohio
• Gavin Buckley, Mayor of Annapolis, MD
• John Cranley, Mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio
• Carlo DeMaria, Mayor of Everett, MA
• Mike Duggan, Mayor of Detroit, MI
• Andrew Ginther, Mayor of Columbus, Ohio
• Dan Horrigan, Mayor of Akron, Ohio
• Wade Kapszukiewicz, Mayor of Toledo, Ohio
• Andy Linko, Mayor of Brownstown Township, MI
• Anan Abu-Taleb, Mayor of Oak Park, IL
• William Peduto, Mayor of Pittsburgh, PA
• Chase Ritenauer, Mayor of Lorain, Ohio
• Nan Whaley, Mayor of Dayton, Ohio

The police executives attending include:

• Kenneth Ball, Chief of Police, Akron, Ohio
• Philip Carey, Police Sergeant, Pittsburgh, PA
• James Craig, Chief of Police, Detroit, MI
• William Holbrook, Chief of Police, Columbia, SC
• Eliot Isacc, Chief of Police, Cincinnati, Ohio
• Melron Kelly, Deputy Chief of Police, Columbia, SC
• George Kral, Chief of Police, Toledo, Ohio
• Kevin Martin, Chief of Police, Lima, Ohio
• Thomas Quinlin, Acting Chief of Police, Columbus, Ohio
• Ladon Reynolds, Chief of Police, Oak Park, IL
• Cel Rivera, Chief of Police, Lorain, Ohio
• Scott Ruszkowski, Chief of Police, South Bend, IN
• George Turner, Public Safety Commissioner, Atlanta, GA
• Robin Lees, Chief of Police, Youngstown, Ohio
• Michael Johnson, Captain, Rochester Hills, MI