As journalists, we at WCPO hope our work makes the community a better place.
Sometimes that means exposing a wrong. Sometimes that means spotlighting organizations or people that need help. And sometimes that means giving people an idea of how they can make a difference.
In June, Taylor Mirfendereski and Mark Nichols wrote about how criminals get their hands on guns. Cincinnati was in the midst of a major surge in shootings. Taylor and Mark detailed the complicated ways law enforcement works to try to track illegal gun sales. They also outlined how criminals often hide guns, rather than carry them. These "community guns" are stashed in familiar hiding places so they can be retrieved when needed.
Charles Tassell and Dale Mallory were surprised by the problem of these community guns.
Now, as a result of Taylor and Mark's story, they are doing something to try to get community guns off the streets before they can be used in violent crime.
Tassell and Mallory have long been active in area nonprofits and the political scene. Mallory served as a state representative from 2007 to 2014.
They worked with police and their individual networks to develop a gun buy-back program. One of the key goals is to collect "community guns" by convincing regular citizens who may know where the guns are to turn them in. They're using gift cards to try to get people to these guns in.
You can read about it here in Taylor's follow-up story detailing Tassell and Mallory's buy-back program.
We're hoping this program helps remove some illegal guns from our community.
Mike Canan is editor of WCPO.com. Contact him at mike.canan@wcpo.com. Follow him on Twitter or Instagram at @Mike_Canan.
