Residents in one D.C. neighborhood say enough is enough after a series of violent crimes, the most recent of which were caught on camera. News4’s Walter Morris has their message.
Recent brazen violent crimes have a Washington D.C. neighborhood on edge, and the community is asking leaders to do more to keep their streets safe.
The panic caused by one recent shooting was captured on video Friday night.
The security camera footage shows a dark SUV stopping at Georgia Avenue NW at Newton Place. A burst of gunfire erupts from the SUV, sending people on the sidewalk running from the car. No one was hurt. Several cars and homes were damaged, police said.
“That sounds like a war zone. It’s really sad,” resident Zak Sawyer said after watching video of the shooting.
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Just a week earlier, a white SUV blatantly crashed into several cars on the same street and took off in broad daylight.
According to D.C. Police data for Police Service Area 409 — which includes Georgia Avenue NW between Rock Creek Church Road and Columbia Road — there have been single-digit increases in the number of crimes including robbery and assault with a dangerous weapon in the past two years. Motor vehicle thefts are up nearly 60%, from 52 in 2020 to 83 this year.
Crimes investigated this year on Newton Place near Georgia Avenue NW include four assaults with a dangerous weapon, two vehicle-related thefts, two other thefts and a robbery, according to MPD's crime map.
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Violence has troubled nearby areas as well. On Monday afternoon, a carjacker forced a woman out of her car and shot her in the leg near 14th and Newton streets NW, police said.
Neighbors say something must be done.
Sawyer says many people in the community are concerned for their safety, but so far they’ve gotten little support from the city.
Folks in the neighborhood say the intersection has become a hot spot for crime.
“If you speak to other residents, they’ve known that this has been a generally unsafe street. And considering there’s a police substation around the corner, you think they’d be able to do a better job of keeping the area safe,” Sawyer said.
One lifelong Washingtonian thinks the problem requires a systematic solution.
“If there ain’t no accountability, how you think? People are gonna do what they wanna do. Kids keep doing the same thing over and over again. Because no accountability,” one resident said. “If you do the crime, you need to do the time.”
Many residents told News4 that they’re in constant contact with police, but all they hear is that the Metropolitan Police Department is investigating.
