Around 30 people attended an anti-violence vigil Saturday night (Image: CHS)
It appears Sunday, August 16th’s murder of a 23-year-old in a Pine/Melrose parking lot is part of a sad wave of fatal shootings in Seattle this summer.
Police are now investigating the murder of a 24-year-old man after a shooting early Sunday morning near 12th and Main:
The victim was seated inside a parked car in the 1200 Block of S. Main Street with several other people early this morning. Three males approached the car and a confrontation ensued. Everyone but the victim got out of the car. The suspects shot the victim multiple times as he sat in the car. Following the 911 call, the victim was transported to HMC where he later died.
The murder occurred only blocks from the spot where an International District community organizer was gunned down earlier this month in a case that remains unsolved. UPDATE: SPD has announced an arrest in the case:
The suspect from this morning’s homicide in the 1200 Block of South Main Street is in custody and is in the process of being booked into the King County Jail.
Late this morning, the 21-year-old suspect wanted in connection with the shooting was taken into custody at his residence. He was interviewed by detectives following his arrest and then booked into jail. Detectives are still seeking the other suspect. This remains an active and on-going investigation.
Anyone with information on this case is urged to contact the Seattle Police Department or they can call the Homicide Tip Line at (206) 233-5000.
UPDATE 8/25/2015: The Seattle Times reports that the victim in Sunday’s shooting actually survived the incident.
This Sunday’s incident follows a fatal shooting Saturday morning outside a Queen Anne gas station that left a 22-year-old man dead and two others wounded:
Homicide and CSI detectives responded to the scene, interviewing witnesses and canvassing for evidence. After further investigation, detectives have determined that the shooting took place inside of the parked car and that suspects and victims have been accounted for. Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that the shooting occurred as a result of a drug robbery.
The murders push Seattle’s number of killings this year to 19 — the 17th came on Capitol Hill just after 2 AM on Sunday the 16th when 23-year-old Ramon Mitchell was shot and killed amid a crowd of nightlife revelers. Police continue to investigate the case.
The 16th came just days before in a fatal shooting at 26th and Columbia in the Central District.
In 2014, 26 people were murdered in the city.
Saturday night, a small group held a candlelight vigil in the parking lot where Mitchell was shot.
Violent crime is up 13% in the East Precinct so far in 2015 compared to the same period last year. SPD officials announced earlier this summer they are working with federal agencies to quell a wave of gun violence across the East Precinct and the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms revealed its agents had installed surveillance cameras on utility poles in the Central District.
UPDATE by Mohamed Adan: About thirty people gathered Saturday night to take part in the anti-crime vigil organized by Social Outreach Seattle and Daniel Goodman, a Capitol Hill resident who recently wrote an open letter to Mayor Ed Murray and other city officials after being beaten and robbed near Hot Mama’s Pizza while walking home from a gay bar.
“There’s been an increase of 38% in crimes against individuals, against persons,” Goodman said at the vigil. “That’s an unacceptable number and we have to do something about it. We have to hold our elected officials accountable for what’s happening in our community.”
Goodman told CHS that he had recently spoken with the Mayor, who had told him that understaffing of the Seattle Police Department was hampering anti-crime efforts. “We basically need to double our police force,” Goodman said.
Shaun Knittel of Social Outreach Seattle told vigil goers that “Harping online does nothing. It does absolutely nothing… But what really makes a difference is getting involved in city policy, and talking to leaders, and coming out to condemn [violence].”
Knittel received a cheer when he said Capitol Hill businesses that attract criminals could be targeted for protests and political pressure from his group if they are not more proactive in stopping crime. “We will shut your business down, one way or another, if you are allowing this sort of thing to happen,” he said.
The vigil was followed by a march through the Pike/Pine neighborhood stopping at several locations, including the area where Goodman was attacked, and several unlit alleys and construction areas, which organizers said were environments that abetted criminal activity. They encouraged people to use the city’s Find It, Fix It app to request improvements to these areas.
