13 shot, 2 killed as violent weekend in Philadelphia hits teens hard: "It should not have to be this way"
Warm weather is not something Philadelphia's Chief Public Safety Director looks forward to.
"I look at my app, I see what's the weather on Friday? Warm and sunny. Hate it," Adam Geer said at City Hall Monday afternoon. "Because I know that the reality of it is some young folks are going to come out and might get into some stuff."
It's something that happened across the city this weekend. According to police, their officers responded to seven shooting incidents between Friday and Sunday. In those incidents, two people were killed and 13 people were shot, seven of them juveniles.
"It should not have to be this way in our city," Mayor Cherelle Parker said. "People should not have to live this way."
Among the incidents were a shooting following an Eid al-Fitr celebration at the Liacouras Center near Temple University's campus. Police say one person was shot and 13 were arrested, two for firearms-related offenses.
"It's, it's, ready for war," said Parker, holding up a photo of one of the weapons police seized from a person at that scene.
There was also a shooting near 70th Street and Elmwood Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia that left a 17-year-old dead and a triple shooting outside Finley Recreation Center in the Mount Airy section of the city. Geer reflected on being at the scene of the rec center shooting after it was cleared by police.
"There were children back at play just feet away from where the shooting had occurred. And then there were chalk markers, about 17 of them on the gravel there," Geer said. "We cannot normalize that."
Parker and other city leaders acknowledged the progress made in combating gun violence. In 2024, homicides fell to their lowest level Philadelphia has seen since 2014. This year, homicides are down nearly 28% from this time last year. And shooting incidents overall continue to tick down, falling nearly 22% year-to-date.
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel says the progress has been even greater with young people.
"We've reduced the number of young people under 18 who were killed by 38% and we're on a 50% trajectory this year," Bethel said.
City leaders say they will continue to make public safety a top priority and work to drive shootings down. On Monday, they called on community groups and family members to speak with young people. They also urged adults to call the city's 211 hotline to find out about city services available to give people more opportunity.
And despite the progress they've seen, Parker said the city has to keep pushing.
"You can have stats and data but it doesn't mean a thing if you don't feel good walking to the supermarket," Parker said.
Bethel said the police department is ready for the summer months and possible spikes in shootings. The department did not detail any specific plans.
