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Arizona State Rep. Jennifer Longdon Testifies On Gun Violence On Capitol Hill

Jennifer Longdon
Kathy Ritchie/KJZZ
Jennifer Longdon

Arizona Democratic Rep. Jennifer Longdon testified Thursday before the U.S. House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee on the public health consequences and costs of gun violence.

Longdon is a victim of gun violence. She was shot and paralyzed 15 years ago.

"Mr. Chair, I am dying in slow motion," she said. "My life will be cut short by the complications of my gunshot wound. I’ve lost count of my near misses. The falls, the fractures, the pressure sores and hospitalizations."  

Longdon told  KJZZs The Show that in Arizona, we spend $1.9 billion annually in direct costs as a result of gun violence.

KJZZ senior field correspondent Kathy Ritchie has 20 years of experience reporting and writing stories for national and local media outlets — nearly a decade of it has been spent in public media.