Nov 24, 2009 6:06 am US/Eastern
Latest Bust Fuels Illegal Gun Violence Outrage
On Day Authorities Bust 2 Men In Fla.-To-N.Y. Ring, Victims' Families Reiterate Need To Get Weapons Off Streets
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
Two men were indicted Monday, accused of running a Florida-to-New York gun trafficking ring. This as parents who lost their children to random gun violence expressed their outrage.
The mother of 13-year-old Kevin Miller told CBS 2 HD about the death of her son last month in a random shooting in the Cambria Heights section of Queens and demanded that parents take guns away from their kids.
"He was on his way home from school after leaving McDonald's and was shot in the back of the head walking away from commotion he saw coming towards him," Donna Hood Greaves said.
"If you know you have a good kid then you have a good kid, but if you know you have a bad kid do something about it."
Parents, whose kids were the innocent victims of gun violence in their neighborhoods, took part in a day of outrage in Times Square on Monday, as the latest victim – 15-year-old Vada Vasquez of the Bronx -- battles for her life. Their pain was intense.
"There was nothing they could do to stop the bleeding. There was nothing they could do," said Gail Owens, who lost a son to gun violence.
This as Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has waged a tireless battle to get illegal guns off the streets, announced that police have nabbed two men -- Watson Joachin and Ryan Woodard -- for running a Florida-to-New York gun trafficking ring that operated out of an East New York building. Undercover cops bought dozens of guns from them during a three-month probe. The duo reportedly bought the guns at Florida gun shows.
"During one transaction Woodard offered our undercover officers four 9 millimeter handguns, along with an assault rifle. He charged $1,000 for each hand gun, which if legally sold would be purchased for $200," NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said.
The mayor railed against guns on the street that result in random shootings of innocent people.
"It's time to say enough. I don't know how many murders you have to have before people say enough is enough," Bloomberg said.
The mayor and Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes used the opportunity to demand that Albany lawmakers get tough and increase the penalties on criminals convicted of bringing illegal guns into the city from out of state.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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