Police are investigating another homicide in an already violent year in Prince William County.
A man believed to be 21 years old was slain Monday night in Woodbridge. Officers responded about 11 p.m. to the 2300 block of Briar Rose Lane.
Woodbridge resident Karen Lawson was relaxing and watching TV in her apartment that night when she heard the gunshots. She looked out her window; what she saw is painful for her to describe.
"In two minutes, the police was here, working on the guy, pumping his chest and everything, and um, yeah," Lawson said, becoming emotional.
Police say the man died at a hospital.
"I just kept on praying for him," Lawson said. "But they worked on him for 40 minutes, 45 minutes. I just figured he wasn't going to make it."
Police haven't released the victim's name, as they're still working to notify his family.
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The shooter is still on the loose. A team of Prince William County officers and detectives were combing through the neighborhood Wednesday, canvassing for any evidence that might lead them to the killer.
Clark Reynolds was inside his home that night too, also just steps away from the crime scene.
"It's uneasy. It's a shame that [it] happens; I mean it's happening more and more," Reynolds said. "They've gotta do something about this gun situation. I don't know what they can do, but they need to do something."
Homicide numbers are up slightly in the county, with 12 so far this year. The majority of this year's homicides are happening on the eastern side of the county, specifically along Route 1.
"We do still have some active investigations into the other homicides that we've had this year," said Jonathan Perok of the Prince William County Police Department. "We are really kind of concentrating along the Route 1 corridor, trying to show some police presence down there and make sure that residents know that we are there, and hopefully they feel safe."
Despite the horror that Lawson witnessed this week, she said she does feel safe.
"It's not like I think it's gonna happen again, so I'm not really terrified to think about it, but just the fact that he died right here," she said.
