Four homicides over 12-hour span puts gun violence back in the spotlight in Sacramento
SACRAMENTO - Gun violence in Sacramento is back in the spotlight after a string of deadly encounters: four homicides and three shooting scenes over a 12-hour period.
The deadly shootings erupted in the neighborhoods of Natomas, Del Paso Heights, and Oak Park.
Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester is calling it an "all-hands-on-deck moment."
Debra Cummings lives in Del Paso Heights and is a volunteer with the organization Black Child Legacy. She helps victims' families impacted by violent crimes. She spent Tuesday morning at two of the three deadly shooting scenes in Sacramento.
"I was over in Natomas at that site and I'm just doubling back because I got word that something was going on over here," Cummings said. "I can just imagine what these families are going through. So you know I am boots to the ground for this type of work because I know how it feels."
Lester sat down with reporters to acknowledge the spike in violence. Sacramento police data shows the city has identified gun crime hot spot zones.
"You know, I am so concerned about what we're seeing," Lester said. "This is clearly an all-hands-on-deck event, right? Because our priority is to really thoroughly and completely investigate these crimes to the best of our ability because the only thing that we can do now for these families is make sure that we bring justice to them."
Sacramento Mayor Darryl Steinberg also addressed the renewed concerns over gun violence nearly six months after the downtown mass shooting.
"I don't think there's a pattern here, in terms of these several incidents," Steinberg said. "But it is troubling. We never want to see this in our city."
Four homicides in a matter of hours, in a city still seeking a solution to gun violence.
"You never can grasp around it emotionally," Cummings said.
This makes 45 homicides in the city of Sacramento so far this year.
Last year there were 58 for the whole year.
