NORFOLK, Va. — Hampton Roads saw several acts of gun violence Saturday, including two shootings in Suffolk, one person killed in Norfolk, another shooting in Newport News and someone walked into a hospital with a gunshot wound in Portsmouth.
The five shootings in four different cities come after multiple meetings by local leaders in recent weeks on how to create positive change.
The violence started at 12:30 a.m. Saturday in Suffolk. Police said a 44-year-old man called police after someone shot him multiple times inside his car in the 1600 block of Route 58.
He was taken to a hospital with life threatening injuries.
Around the same time, someone in Portsmouth walked into a hospital with a gunshot wound.
Around 2 a.m., Newport News Police said they found a man who’d been shot in the Colony Square area. He died at the scene.
Then, around 5 a.m. in Norfolk, someone shot and killed a man in the 3100 block of Illinois Avenue.
Police have not released suspect information in any of these cases.
But the violence didn’t stop there.
At 10:30 a.m., Suffolk Police said 43-year-old Ronald Richardson shot 30-year-old Rakheem Scott multiple times, ultimately killing him.
Police said Scott was at the Auto Care Center on West Constance Road to have his car fixed by a person who rented space at the shop.
They said there was an argument about the amount of time it was taking to fix his car.
Police said that situation was defused by a third party, but Scott got into another altercation leading to gunfire.
Suffolk Police say Richardson has been charged with 2nd Degree Murder and Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Felony.
All of these shootings, and the dozens of others Hampton Roads has seen so far this year, beg the question what are city and state leaders doing about it?
Congressman Bobby Scott held a round table discussion last week, where city and community leaders outlined their concerns and possible solutions.
"Prevention programs sometimes take 15 years to see the benefits. Well, we need to start them now," said Scott.
Early intervention and knowing the needs of your community are just some ideas leaders that the cities of Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton and Newport News had as they discussed crime in Hampton Roads.
The Newport News Sheriff’s Office also highlighted their re-entry program, which supports inmates reintegrating back into society.
In Norfolk, Interim Police Chief Mike Goldsmith spoke in front of city council at their fall retreat this week to introduce the department’s plan for the next several years.
The objectives aim to foster a better environment for officers and to improve retention and quality of service by 2035.
As for right now, he said they are stepping up patrol and the department is looking to launch a Real Time Crime Center likely by the end of the year. That would create a hub for information, like videos, reports, and service calls to reduce crime.
"The idea is to build a picture that we can act on. Quite frankly the goal is to reduce crime. Not necessarily make arrests but reduce crime," Goldsmith told members of council.
They're also ramping up recruitment efforts since the department is currently down more than 230 officers.
If you have any information about any of those shootings, call the crime line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.