Residents criticize Monroe County gun-safety survey, question consultant spending

MONROE COUNTY, Pa. — Several residents raised objections at the Monroe County Board of Commissioners meeting on May 21 to the county's Community Partnership for Gun Safety strategic plan and its associated state grant, arguing the survey methods, youth focus and consultant spending are inappropriate for the county.

Theresa Panch, a public commenter, said the grant award to the county was $695,286 and criticized the survey's proposed use of the Attitudes Towards Gun Violence Scale and other instruments she said are designed for larger cities. "It looks to me when I looked at this is that it's more for the demographics of a place like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, not for Monroe County," Panch said.

Dulcea Ritter, who identified herself as from Chicago, said about $502,000 of the grant funds have gone to consultants and asked what services those consultants are delivering. "So what how can you justify $5,500,000 for consultants and nothing is going to the community? Nothing is going to the children that are being surveyed," Ritter said.

Nicole Crossman, chair of Moms for Liberty Monroe County, called the survey "surveillance" and said it was "built on abysmal data" and "shaped by opinion, not science." Crossman urged the county to pursue alternatives such as hunter-safety programs and said parents should have an explicit opt-in for any school surveys. "If the county wants to promote real gun safety, then bring hunter safety programs into school," Crossman said.

Evelyn Lopez, who said she recently founded a Monroe County nonprofit called Path to Peace focused on opioids and homelessness, introduced her organization and said she intends to seek funding from opioid-settlement dollars for community outreach and case management.

Commissioners and county staff responded during the meeting with several points: the survey instrument is still being finalized, school districts have been shown sample questions and two school boards have reviewed questions, and parts of the grant fund community-facing items. A county speaker said parts of the grant pay for a crisis-intervention coordinator position, advertising and youth incentives, and that the county is treating the project as a pilot that could position Monroe County as a model for other Pennsylvania counties.

Speakers who questioned the survey and consultant spending repeatedly asked for itemized disbursements and for clarity on how money will reach local organizations and schools. County officials said some budgeted amounts have not yet been spent and that the grant is a three-year award intended to establish a pilot program before additional funding is sought.

The public comment period on the gun-safety project featured repeated calls for transparency about the survey questions, parental consent procedures and a clearer breakdown of consultant fees versus community program spending. No formal county action on the survey or its instruments was recorded during the meeting.

Residents who spoke raised local data from the coroner's and district attorney's offices to argue that youth-targeted survey work might not reflect Monroe County patterns. Commissioners and project leaders framed the effort as prevention-focused, saying the goal is to identify issues before tragedies occur and to coordinate school districts, law enforcement and community providers.

The discussion closed with commissioners reiterating that the survey questions are still under review and that school boards are part of the review process. Commenters said they will continue to press for more transparency and, in some cases, legal options if the survey is implemented without fuller public disclosure and parental consent.