“The weather always affects us, and it’s been unusually nice,” Sgt. Don Livingston said.
Six shootings in the first 10 days of this month have pushed Portland’s gang violence calls to 30 so far this year, more than double the number at this time last year.
That’s more than 250 bullets flying in the city since the start of the year, sometimes wounding or killing their target, other times striking cars or whizzing through homes, narrowly missing innocent children.
The 30 total gang violence calls are up from 14 a year ago.
“That’s alarming, and it’s pre-Spring,” said Antoinette Edwards, director of the city’s Office of Youth Violence Prevention.
Ex-gang members, along with former state legislators, mothers who lost their children to violence and local pastors all spoke out Friday at a community meeting, sickened by the continued gunfire and demanding residents wake up, take notice and do something.
“All my friends kids are dying,” said Talina Branch, a former Crip who is just ending her 150-month prison sentence on drug-related and other assault charges and living in a federal halfway house. She’s now joining with former rival gang members and hoping to walk the streets to see if she can make a difference with younger men and women who still cling to their gang connections.
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