“No bullet” plan hits the mark

Officials report zero incidents of celebratory shooting

Each year stray bullets from celebratory shots aimed into the air put people’s lives in danger for as far as the bullet can fly. And with bullets routinely striking innocent bystanders during New Year’s Eve,  Miami-Dade County Commissioner Audrey M. Edmonson, District 3 and City of Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, once again joined forces to ask the community to put a halt on shooting guns and rifles to mark the New Year.
“Please lay your guns down,” Edmonson said at press conference last Thursday. “Please lay them down on New Year’s Eve and on any other holiday throughout 2012. It’s time for all of this to stop. We are here on behalf of the community.”
The message of the yearly event, “One Bullet Kills the Party,” is clear — urge residents not to shoot guns during times [New Year’s Eve and July 4th] when such shootings tend to occur, placing the innocent in potential danger.
“We have been lucky this year,” Regalado said. “We haven’t had that many incidents. I remember two years ago, when, with the help of Commissioner Edmonson, this idea was birthed. One bullet can kill the party and that is the bottom line — one bullet can kill every party.”
“It is unfortunate that people celebrate in this way,” said Manuel Orosa, City of Miami police chief. Don’t shoot your weapons up in the air. Nobody is going to win. Somebody is going to get hit by one of those bullets.”
The campaign was apparently successful this year as there were no reports of celebratory shootings.
“There haven’t been any reported incidents of celebratory violence with us,” said Detective Javier Biaez, Miami-Dade Police Department.