Patty Vacchio, a longtime Inwood resident, believes mental health needs to be addressed alongside the revised gun control laws. “We have to help our kids today before they get to their breaking point,” she said. “Mental health needs to be addressed because no one in their right mind would do something like that.”

“I like that [Vacchio] raised the issue of mental health,” said Lawrence High School Student Body President Ruth Enriquez. “I think [Cuomo] is tightening gun laws fairly.”

Former Inwood resident Marsha Williams hopes a reasonable and safe gun control policy will be drafted soon. “There are still so many people in favor of the second amendment and can’t see that there’s more to it,” she said. “Mental health issues exist but many people don’t believe that supersedes their second amendment right to own a weapon.”

Overall, Williams said while she respects Cuomo’s determination she thinks he may have bitten off more than he can chew. “It’s ambitious to say the least,” she said about the budget. “And I don’t know how he’s going to do it.”