The Savannah Police Department held a press conference on Monday afternoon to address gunfire around the 1100 block of Graydon Street on Savannah's east side that left one person dead and three others wounded.
Chief Roy Minter said Savannah Police officers responded to a report of a shooting at 6 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 16. Officers arrived within 90 seconds of the call and discovered several victims in three different areas, blocks away from each other, said Minter.
SPD recovered 60 shell casings from different caliber weapons at the scene, and, according to Minter, five homes and five vehicles were caught in the crossfire.
The four gunhshot victims range in ages from 13 to 23 years old. Two of the three wounded with non life-threatening injuries were juveniles. The homicide victim, the first in 2022, was a 23-year-old woman. The police have not released her identity. Minter said he believes individuals involved in this incident “are probably known to each other."
Caught in the crossfire
“Unfortunately, folks," said Minter, "This is another senseless act of violence that has occurred in our community that has put innocent families and children in danger and resulted in the loss of a woman’s life.”
Detectives are still conducting interviews and analyzing evidence from the scene, said Minter, including whether the shootings are gang-related. As to where they are in the investigation, Minter said they are focusing on the three “W’s.”
“The first one is who. We’re trying to identify the suspect or suspects. The other thing is what. We’re still looking to determine what factors led to this incident… And then, of course, why? Why are we still continuing to see people make poor decisions, poor tragic decisions using firearms in our community?” said Minter.
At the end of 2021, Savannah marked 34 homicides — three more than in 2020, and 10 more than in 2019. To curb this violence, Minter said, SPD has initiated an officer neighborhood safety engagement program in the 2022 budget.
“That’s important for getting in the community and creating that bridge between some of the violent acts we’re seeing and individuals who have committed violent acts or individuals who are considering committing those violent acts. Starting those conversations is very important. We’ve got to find some way to break this culture of violence in our community."
'Perpetuating violence on ourselves'
At the press conference, Mayor Van Johnson said that he spent the day reflecting on the life of Martin Luther King Jr., watching documentaries, an annual tradition.
“This man died preaching peace, and here we are 53-some odd years later, singing the same song,” said Johnson. “The difference this time is that we’re perpetuating violence on ourselves.”
Johnson said he, District 2 Alderman Detric Legget, and District 6 Alderman Kurtis Purtee spent time last night “talking to families of someone who lost their child.”
“If they’re out there, these gentlemen behind me will find them,” said Johnson, pointing to the SPD police officers at the conference and pointing out the department's 88% homicide clearance rate.
Legget said it was “very disappointing” and “very emotional” to see the shooting occur in his district. “We try to be as proactive as possible, but when we have heinous crimes such as this, it’s a step back for us, especially being that it’s King weekend, and it’s an opportunity for us to show love. So we’re gonna try to do everything we can to support the police department and community to find out what happened.”
Tipsters may contact the SPD Homicide Unit at (912) 651-4362 or the Crime Tip Line at (912) 525-3124. CrimeStoppers has a standing reward up to $2,500 for crime tips. Tipsters remain anonymous and can reach CrimeStoppers by calling (912) 234-2020 or visiting SavannahChathamCrimeStoppers.org and clicking “Submit Online Tip.”
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: 'Another senseless act of violence': Savannah Police investigating eastside shooting
