More Than 230 People Fatally Shot In Shootings Over The Fourth Of July Weekend
According to the latest data gathered by the Gun Violence Archive (GVA), at least 233 people were killed and 618 people were injured by gun violence in more than 500 shootings throughout the country over the Fourth of July weekend, a 26% decrease from last year’s holiday weekend.
The data released Tuesday morning, compiled shootings from 5 p.m. Friday – the start of the holiday weekend – through Monday, and said there were 314 fatal shootings with 751 injuries during the same period last year, the GVA said.
It noted that the big drop in shootings and the number of shooting victims come as major cities nationwide confront a surge in violent crime.
Last year’s holiday weekend fell as the country began to reopen following the pandemic’s stay-at-home orders and huge demonstrations over the death of George Floyd in May.
According to the New York Police Department (NYPD), there were 26 casualties from 21 gunshots in New York from Friday to Sunday, a drop from the same period last year when 30 individuals were shot in 25 shootings.
On July 4 itself, the city recorded 12 shooting incidents involving 13 victims – an increase from the eight shootings and eight victims seen last year, NYPD added.
Reports noted that so far this year, gun violence incidents in New York have risen by almost 40% over the same period last year when the city recorded 767 shootings and 885 victims.
According to the Chicago Police Department, 100 people were shot and 18 people were murdered between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Monday in Chicago, after Police Superintendent David Brown expressed worry ahead of the “most trying weekend of the year” for cops. During that time, there were 69 gunshot occurrences, according to police.
Reports noted that the number of murders remained the same since 2020, but the number of gunshot incidents and victims rose. From July 2 to 5, 2020, there were 83 shooting victims and 18 homicides in 47 shooting events in Chicago.
It added, however, that unlike other cities seeing a surge in violent crime, Chicago’s homicide rate is 2% lower in June than it was in 2020 but the number of casualties has increased by 14%.
Violence across the country on July 4 weekend
Over the July 4th weekend, golf professional Gene Siller was reportedly fatally shot in suburban Atlanta on Saturday, as the police continue to hunt the suspect. He was found unresponsive with an “apparent gunshot wound to the head.”
In Fort Worth, Texas, eight people were injured on Sunday after a shooting incident that started from a public confrontation between a group of men.
In Norfolk, Virginia, four children said to have been shot on Friday, including a 6-year-old girl.
One person and 11 others were also reportedly injured in a shooting that occured at a block party in Toledo, Ohio on Sunday night.
Meanwhile, two guys were killed and three others were injured late Sunday night at a party near Cincinnati, Ohio – both men were engaged in a verbal confrontation first that escalated into the two exchanging gunshots.
On July 4, police in Dallas, Texas also responded to two different shooting incidents, with one resulting in the death of five individuals.
In Las Vegas, two individuals were reportedly killed and at least seven others suffered injuries after a shooting in Las Vegas on Sunday night.
Homicide rates in large cities across the country were up more than 30% on average last year, and up another 24% for the beginning of this year, according to criminologists as earlier reported by The New York Times.
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