Baltimore County residents call series of weekend shootings "disheartening"
Baltimore County police are investigating three separate shootings that happened over the weekend, leaving one man dead and two others injured.
The shootings happened in Towson, Gwynn Oak and Catonsville between Saturday and Sunday.
Police responded to an apartment complex on Mylander Lane in Towson around 11:10 a.m. Sunday and found a 21-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds.
Police identified the victim as Tavaughn Hamlet Jr. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The fatal shooting came after two other shootings in Baltimore County over the weekend.
The first happened Saturday afternoon on King James Circle in Gwynn Oak, where police found a 46-year-old man who had been shot. He was taken to a hospital for treatment.
Early Sunday morning, police responded to Ingleside Avenue in Catonsville, where they found a 38-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds. He was also taken to a hospital.
Police have not said whether the three shootings are connected or released information about possible suspects.
Community reaction
The weekend shootings have some Baltimore County residents concerned about violence in their communities.
"It's really unfortunate, it's scary, it's disheartening," said Tanza Aliberti of Catonsville.
Aliberti said she generally feels safe living in the Baltimore area and hopes the shootings are isolated incidents.
"I do really enjoy living in Baltimore, I do feel safe here in general. I'm hoping they were isolated and not related to anything bigger," she said.
Aliberti said she believes investing in communities and creating opportunities for neighbors to interact can help prevent violence.
"Things like food trucks and farmers markets where you have a lot of people who are just out, they see each other, they know each other, they recognize each other," she said. "I feel like when there is a reason for people to be outside communicating, you get to know people, you get to know who is familiar and that helps keep us all safe."
Some residents WJZ spoke with were hesitant to discuss the shootings. One woman said violence has become an everyday reality in her Gwynn Oak neighborhood.
Aliberti said she remains hopeful about the future and believes additional investment in community programs could help reduce crime.
"I think Baltimore is on the right track. I do think there are places, areas, instances where more investment in the community, community programs, I think maybe the county needs to take some notes from Brandon Scott who has implemented lots of programs in Baltimore City and homicides are down significantly. That's wonderful," she said.
WJZ reached out to Baltimore County police to ask how this year's homicide numbers compare with the same period last year, but the department did not respond.
Police have not released additional details about what led to the shootings.
Anyone with information is asked to call Baltimore County police at 410-887-INFO.
