In the aftermath of last Sunday’s downtown mass shooting, county and city leaders, along with former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, discussed local efforts to quell gun violence in Tucson during a panel Thursday.
“We are at a crossroads. We can let the shooting continue, or we can act,” said Giffords, a survivor of the 2011 mass shooting that killed six people in Tucson.
The July 19 shooting left 10 people injured, including the suspect, who was shot by police as he attempted to flee the scene. While there were no deaths, the Tucson Police Department has logged 16 fatal shootings so far this year, according to its online crime database.
The topics of Thursday’s discussion ranged from the Pima County Attorney’s prosecutorial practices to ongoing city-led efforts to improve downtown safety, including a new partnership between the TPD and area businesses.
“It is incredible work that is working in our community, and so I just lament the fact that we do not have enough resources to have expansive programs within the City of Tucson, Pima County, and throughout our state,” said Tucson Mayor Regina Romero.
Several dozen Tucson residents filled the room at the El Rio Neighborhood Center in Tucson’s westside. City and county leaders took questions from about a half-dozen community members during the panel.
Pam Simon, a former teacher and survivor of the 2011 Tucson mass shooting targeting Giffords, asked how the suspect, 21-year-old David Leroy French, came to possess a firearm.
Tucson Police Chief Monica Prieto said she couldn’t disclose the details of an ongoing investigation.
“What I can tell you in terms of a lot of cases that we see, juveniles get guns because they're purchased by other people,” she added. “They're taken in by committing burglaries. So that's why it's important to secure weapons when you do have them, in your cars or in your home.”
‘We are awash in firearms ##
' French is facing 19 criminal charges in relation to the shooting. In 2024, French pleaded guilty to firing a weapon during an altercation. The judge in that case placed French on probation.
Pima County Attorney Laura Conover’s office has faced scrutiny in the days following the incident due to French’s prior conviction.
“When will we start seeing harsher punishment for criminals committing gun violence, especially when it's premeditated violence?“ a Tucson resident asked Conover.
The county attorney noted that her office had just finished prosecuting a defendant for first-degree murder with no plea offer.
“And if you haven't heard about that case in two weeks, it's because there's been hardly any reporting. … The work [is] being done behind the scenes to make sure we're getting there,” Conover said.
At Thursday’s panel, Conover pointed out that Tucson has seen a drop in homicides. In 2025, the Tucson Police Department documented 54 homicides in the city, the lowest rate since 2019, when TPD recorded 43 homicides.
“All markers of violent crime across the board now are way, way, way down,” she said.
Still, Conover acknowledged: “We are awash in firearms.”
Daisy Warren, a Tucson resident who lost her 19-year-old son to gun violence last fall, knows that reality all too well. After her son’s death, she said, she began asking young people she knew if they carried firearms. Many said they did — for protection.
“‘You go to a party, you carry your gun. Because you need to protect yourself.’ That's what they say to me. And I said, ‘No. Because you don't have time to react in those cases,’” she said, speaking to AZPM shortly after Thursday’s panel.
“It's like something that it's cool for them now, and it's so sad,” she added.
Speaking Thursday, Conover said her office hopes to distribute up to 17,000 more gun locks to county residents this year and hire two new domestic violence prosecutors.
Downtown Tucson Partnership launches after months in the making##
City-led programs, like Violence Interruption and Vitalization Action (VIVA), attempt to zero in on high-risk areas to prevent gun violence. Last year, the city started its Community Safety Leadership Institute, which involves training residents on violence prevention.
“They're coming out empowered. They're coming out with tools and skills, and they're building trust with local government,” said Oscar Medina, who manages the city’s Office of Violence Prevention and Intervention.
This week, TPD also launched an initiative with the Downtown Tucson Partnership, which had been months in the making, Romero said. That program will involve de-escalation training, among other resources, for downtown business owners and employees.
After attending Thursday’s panel, Tucson resident Aamir Quraishy said he hoped to see more community engagement from Tucson Police officers who are stationed downtown.
Better relationships between police and community community members, he said, would help young people become less hesitant to report a crime or incident.
“The problem is the underreporting … Most kids in danger, to be honest, had a role [in] getting themselves in that danger, and that downward spiral, and then they become too scared.”
Quaraishy, a Tucson native and University of Arizona PhD candidate, said he frequents the downtown area. In the early hours of Sunday, he noted, he was nearby — but ended up a few blocks away from the shooting site to help a friend search for her phone.
“That's literally what saved my life, because I'm a nosy dude. I would have absolutely walked down to that area and been shot,” he said.
