I was deeply concerned to learn that a round of bullets just missed a young woman and her sleeping newborn baby in their home on Herschel Street in the early hours of Wednesday morning. I commend the Providence Police Department for their swift work to respond to the scene and investigate this heinous crime.

This life-threatening violence is unacceptable. People deserve to feel safe in their homes, and events like this undermine that sense of safety and security. As Chairwoman of the Council’s Committee on Finance, I secured funding for a new Police Academy to begin immediately after the current academy graduates to return our ranks to a number necessary to support community policing. And I will continue to work to ensure that the Providence Police Department is amply staffed and prepared to address the growing wave of shootings and other crimes throughout the city.

We can only be thankful that this young woman and her newborn baby were not injured on Wednesday morning. We must remain committed to stopping these instances before they happen, through community policing and nonviolence education and diversion programs, and by keeping guns out of the wrong hands.