“The COVID-19 pandemic destabilized our communities in unprecedented ways and contributed to the profound mental health and substance use crisis gripping our city today. The $9 million mental health investment we are announcing today is rooted in an understanding that true and lasting public safety requires investment in our friends, family, and neighbors who are struggling to get the support they need. By investing in preventative efforts, we are making it clear that the criminal justice system must not be the main vehicle for addressing mental and behavioral health,” said District Attorney Bragg.

“Jeru McCray went to great lengths to assemble ghost guns and purchase a stockpile of ammunition, which were stored in an Upper West Side apartment with a young child,” said District Attorney Bragg. “We will continue to take an aggressive, multi-faceted approach to getting both ghost guns and traditional firearms out of our communities, and thanks to our dedicated Ghost Guns Initiative prosecutor we are continuing to make progress.”