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Man dies in 24th and Spring shooting

IMG_1799A man has died in a Central District shooting that comes after days of gun violence in the area.

Police were called to the 900 block of 24th Ave just before 4:30 PM to a report of a shooting. Arriving officers found a man down with a gunshot wound. Seattle Fire units were called to treat the victim as containment of the area was set up by police. Homicide and gang detectives were called to the scene as was a team from the department’s Crime Scene Investigation unit.

Mount Calvary Pastor Reggie Witherspoon identified the victim as an area resident in his 30s. “A young African American male is dead,” Witherspoon said. “That’s what I’m concerned about.” Witherspoon said the victim had a reputation of being a “good guy.”

UPDATE 7/3/2015: The victim’s name is Torrence Phillips according to people at the scene. An impromptu sidewalk memorial has been created at the site:


SPD’s Sgt. Sean Whitcomb said that it is likely the victim was targeted and that this is not a case of an accidental shooting or a stray bullet. Whitcomb said East Precinct will increase patrols in the area heading into the holiday weekend.

SPD released this brief report on the murder investigation:

Detectives are investigating after a man in his 30’s was found shot to death in the Central District early Thursday evening. Witnesses began calling 911 after hearing what they believed to be multiple gunshots in the 900 block of 24 Ave just after 4PM.  Officers arrived and found a man lying on the ground dead from multiple gunshot wounds.  Homicide Detectives Crime Scene Investigators, and the Gang Unit are all investigating.  At this time ,detectives are working with neighbors to develop a description of the suspect. If you have any information about the crime please call the Homicide Tip Line at (206) 233-5000.

IMG_1783A witness told police a black vehicle was seen speeding away from the scene following the shooting.

The incident follows a shooting early Tuesday morning near 23rd and Cherry that left one man with a gunshot wound to the arm, and a shooting last Thursday night at Powell Barnett park in which the male victim was shot in the chest. Tuesday night, another drive-by damaged a vehicle at 21st and James.

With reporting by Alex Garland and Bryan Cohen

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26 Comments
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CDresident
CDresident
8 years ago

So… is there a gang war going on or something? I count four shootings between union and cherry on 23rd in just over a week. Are they all drive by’s?

Kristen
Kristen
8 years ago
Reply to  CDresident

I really wonder if it’s the heat. I grew up in Chicago, and shootings went WAY up the hotter it got outside.

CPHill
CPHill
8 years ago
Reply to  Kristen

ha ha

Really? The heat alone is not gonna make people whip out there guns and shoot each other.

Jon
Jon
8 years ago
Reply to  CPHill

A lot of research has been done to support this. Violent crimes definitely spike during heat waves.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/hot-and-bothered-experts-say-violent-crime-rises-with-the-heat/

Betty
Betty
8 years ago

Don’t forget the five or six around xmas and new years, one of which was at the same corner. It stopped after the raid at 27th and Marion at the end of February, until this recent spate.

mitch
mitch
8 years ago

this is from the home on 27 and spring ??

citycat
citycat
8 years ago

It is really brazen to do this at 4:30 in the afternoon. I walk through this intersection on my way home from work every day and the chance of witnesses is very high. There is a house on the corner that always has its windows open, and there is a house on the opposite corner that always has several people gardening in the yard. Many more people could have been hurt.

There has been a lot more street activity over the last few weeks. I had to go to the post office on Tuesday, and there were far more people loitering in the parking lot than on normal day.

Betty
Betty
8 years ago
Reply to  citycat

There was a shooting last winter from the end of my driveway just a few houses down from this one, at 5:30 in the afternoon. Many of the shootings have happened in the day time, very few have been late at night.

James
James
8 years ago

Had my nice new car stolen from 23rd and Spring last year. Very bad area the police appear unable to clean up.

Brian
Brian
8 years ago
Reply to  James

I lived a couple blocks from there for 5 years before moving last summer to a different part of the city and I can’t be happier now that summer has started. It’s really noisy over there with lots of sirens on the weekends (never mind noise from other sources). From what I personally heard and saw it seemed like the police were doing what they could.

I don’t think you meant it this way, but the police can never really clean up an area unless the people who live there want it cleaned up. I called the police several times when I saw or heard something that warranted a call and I knew my neighbors on my block (white and black). My block – and I considered it “my block” (as well as my neighbors’) – seemed safer than some other streets, at least in part I felt, because I tried in a small way to make it a safer. Because I’m a renter though, it was much easier and rational to simply move to an area containing a higher proportion of non noise creating people. Looking forward to a non-gunfire/police siren night ;)

Cat
Cat
8 years ago

With some periods of calm, that area has been like that since California gangs moved up here in the 80s. I lived a few blocks from there in the early 90s, and we heard gunfire pretty much every night throughout the CD.

Omari Tahir-Garrett
8 years ago

I WAS SITTING 25 YARDS AWAY FROM WHERE THE MAN WAS SHOT AND THOUGHT THE GUN FIRE WAS FIRE CRACKERS UNTIL POLICE AND CROWD BEGAN TO SHOW UP??? REMEMBER NATIVE AMERICAN JOHN T. WILLIAMS GUN DOWN SAME WAY??? Omari Tahir-Garrett, VIETNAM VETERAN, WORLD TRAVELER, HISTORY TEACHER AND CANDIDATE FOR SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL POS. 9

Website: OmariForCityCouncil
Website: AFRICATOWN / CHINATOWN NEWS DIGEST
Website: prison2president

larrymcdibble
larrymcdibble
8 years ago

Hey everyone…..look! The mayor of crazytown has shown up again.

CD Citizen
CD Citizen
8 years ago
Reply to  larrymcdibble

No reason to be a jerk on this particular post.

I sincerely hope that everyone at Umoja Peace Center were fine and safe tonight.

Glenn
Glenn
8 years ago

I agree the previous poster did not have to disparage the Council candidate. But why bring up the shooting of John Williams, who was shot by a Seattle Police Officer? The situations don’t seem comparable at all, unless the candidate is suggesting the latest unfortunate victim was shot by an Officer.

Omari Tahir-Garrett
8 years ago

AFRICATOWN INDEPENDENCE GATHERING AT GARFIELD HIGH SCHOOL JULY 4TH 8PM TO ESTABLISH AFRICATOWN SUMMER PEACE ACADEMY AT GARFIELD HIGH SCHOOL TO COMBAT VIOLENCE IN AFRICATOWN / CD. ARMED GOVERNMENT AGENTS ARE GUNNING DOWN UNARMED AFRICANS ACROSS AMERICA SETTING A BAD EXAMPLE FOR ARMED CIVILIANS TO GUN DOWN EACH OTHER??? REMEMBER NATIVE AMERICAN JOHN T, WILLIAMS AND THE EUROPEAN COLONIAL SETTLER MANIFEST SETTLER SAYING , THE ONLY GOOD INDIAN IS A DEAD INDIAN”???. “THE MORE THINGS CHANGE THE MORE THEY REMAIN THE SAME”??? WHERE DO YOU THING YOUNG PEOPLE GET THERE IDEAS AND EXAMPLES FROM??? THE AMERICAS ARE “INDIAN COUNTRY, ASIA IS ASIAN COUNTRY, AFRICA IS AFRICAN COUNTRY AND YES, EUROPE IS EUROPEAN COUNTRY??? YES THE EUROPEAN COLONIAL SETTLER “JUDEO-CHRISTIAN” TERRORIST INDIAN KILLER CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS WAS LOST AND THOUGHT HE HAD MADE IT TO INDIA??? YES, DESCENDANTS OF EUROPEAN COLONIAL SETTLER “JUDEO-CHRISTIAN” BOAT PEOPLE ARE STILL LOST HERE IN “INDIAN COUNTRY”??? I SUGGEST YOU LOOK IN THE MIRROR AND THEN HEAD BACK TO YOUR HOMELAND FOR “HOMELAND SECURITY”??? “LITTLE WHITE LIES” HAVE BEEN VERY GENOCIDAL TO NATIVE AMERICANS IN THEIR “HOMELAND”??? WHERE IS THE NATIVE AMERICAN “INDIANS” (NOT BORN IN INDIA) “HOMELAND SECURITY AGENCY”??? THE RED, WHITE AND BLUE STARS AND STRIPES, CONFEDERATE FLAG, AND UNION JACK ALL REPRESENT EUROPEAN COLONIAL SETTLER “JUDEO-CHRISTIAN” TERRORISM / COLNIAL GENOCIDE. I DIDN’T WRITE THIS HISTORY AND IT WAS TAUGHT TO ME BU EUROPEAN COLONIAL SETTELER TEACHERS AND THEIR HISTORY BOOKS TITLED “THE AGE OF IMPERIALISM” AND “OUR CONTINENT”??? I LEARNED ABOUT NATIVE AMERICAN “NOBEL SAVAGE” GENOCIDE AND THE AFRICAN “SLAVE TRADE” BY CHANCE??? “LITTLE WHITE LIES” AND MYTHS TAUGHT TO INNOCENT CHILDREN AS HISTORY IS “CHILD ABUSE / MENTAL RAPE / MENTACIDE”??? PLEASE READ NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY AND THEN LOOK HARD IN THE MIRROR??? JUST THE MESSENGER NOT THE MESSAGE MAKER SO STAY TUNED??? Omari Tahir-Garrett, VIETNAM VETERAN, WORLD TRAVELER, HISTORY TEACHER AND CANDIDATE FOR SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL POS. 9
Website: OmariForCityCouncil
Website: AFRICATOWN / CHINATOWN NEWS DIGEST
Website: prison2president

zeep
zeep
8 years ago

shhhhh…..

eric
eric
8 years ago

I can’t even read that. All caps is super hard to read

Neighbor
Neighbor
8 years ago
Reply to  eric

As a public service, allow me to present this translation of Omari’s post……..

(there will be an) Africatown independence gathering at Garfield High School (on) July 4th (at) 8pm. (The purpose of this meeting is) to establish (the) Africatown Summer Peace Academy at Garfield High School to combat violence in Africatown/cd.

Armed government agents are gunning down unarmed Africans across America, setting a bad example for armed civilians to gun down each other. Remember Native American John T, Williams, and the European colonial settler manifest settler saying, “the only good indian is a dead indian”? The more things change the more they remain the same”

Where do you think young people get their ideas and examples? The Americas are “Indian country, Asia is Asian country, Africa is African country and yes, Europe is European country. Yet, the European colonial settler “Judeo-Christian” terrorist Indian killer Christopher Columbus was lost and thought he had made it to India.

Yes, descendants of European colonial settler “Judeo-Christian” boat people are still lost here in “Indian country”. I suggest you look in the mirror and then head back to your homeland for “homeland security”???

“Little white lies” have been very genocidal to Native Americans in their “homeland”. Where is the Native American “Indians” (not born in India) “homeland security agency”???

The red, white and blue stars and stripes, confederate flag, and union jack all represent European colonial settler “Judeo-Christian” terrorism / colonial genocide.

I didn’t write this history. It was taught to me by European colonial settler teachers and their history books titled “The Age Of Imperialism” and “Our Continent” I learned about the Native American “noble savage” genocide and the African “slave trade” by chance.

“Little white lies” and myths taught to innocent children as history is “child abuse / mental rape / mentacide! Please read Native American history and then look hard in the mirror.

Just the messenger not the message maker so stay tuned.

Omari tahir-garrett, vietnam veteran, world traveler, history teacher and candidate for seattle city council pos. 9
Website: omariforcitycouncil
Website: africatown / chinatown news digest
Website: prison2president

CD206
CD206
8 years ago

Omari could you even summons the tiniest bit of class? Your dumb agenda is not needed here. You add nothing.

CD206
CD206
8 years ago

The thing that I just cannot wrap my head around is why it has to come to deadly force? Do these people really understand that they are killing another human? Over what? Aside from the victims life is it really worth chancing that you’ll get a a major prison sentence? You won’t see your kids or your girl? What is the fucking point?

bb
bb
8 years ago
Reply to  CD206

The point is there is no point. I wouldn’t look too deeply into the matter.

Paulcr
Paulcr
8 years ago

The memorial was started by the owners of the house the shooting occurred directly in front of. They didn’t know him, but knew he was a human being and his live deserved to be honored.

That M Guy
That M Guy
8 years ago
Reply to  Paulcr

That was us. We’ve been maintaining it the past few days and have spoken with, and grieved with, and hugged, many people who came by to pay their respects. We will be taking it down soon, not wanting Torrence to be forgotten, but because we cannot continue to maintain it past the weekend and we don’t want it to deteriorate and appear disrespectful. There were gifts and cards left there, and we will hold on to them if anyone would care to pass them on to Torrence’s family. We want them to know that even people who had not met him care and grieve.

local
local
8 years ago
Reply to  That M Guy

Thank you.

heather
heather
8 years ago
Reply to  That M Guy

Beautiful….. good people are few and far between these days and I just want to say you are truly a breath of fresh air