CHESAPEAKE, Va. — When violence strikes just steps away from your front door, it's no longer some other community's dilemma.
A Monday morning shooting on Fireside Road, which sent one woman to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, reminds community activist Shana Hicks she lives in a line of work that never ends.
"One person shot is too many, one death is too many, especially when it’s snatched away," Hicks said.
Hicks, who lives steps away from that non-fatal shooting near Chesapeake's Plymouth Park neighborhood, reflected on a weekend of violence in a city that saw at least three separate shooting-related incidents in less than two days.
“Some neighbors have dealt with this for so long, saying they’re desensitized to it. Some people feel, 'As long as they don’t bother my household,' but there’s also some who say, 'I don’t want my kids outside,'" said the community anti-violence advocate.
Chesapeake's 12th Homicide | Deadly Fairview Street shooting
One person died in a shooting on Fairview Street in Chesapeake on Sunday evening.
Police were called to the 3100 block of Fairview Street at about 4:57 p.m., according to a Chesapeake Police Department press release.
They found a man who had been shot and although police and fire personnel attempted life-saving measures, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Police confirmed on Monday that the victim was 18 years old.
Chesapeake's 13th Homicide | Body discovered near Dismal Swamp
A body pulled from the water along the Dismal Swamp Canal Trail on Sunday had gunshot wounds, Chesapeake police said.
The Chesapeake Police Department was called to the scene at 12:44 p.m. Sunday, according to a police department press release. The scene was in the 1200 block of George Washington Highway.
A body was found in the water along the shoreline of the park entrance. Once Chesapeake Police’s Underwater Search and Rescue Team pulled the male victim from the water, they discovered he had what appeared to be gunshot wounds.
Detectives are investigating this as a homicide.
Anyone with information about any of these shootings is asked to call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP, submit a tip online at P3TIPS.COM, or on their smartphone on the P3TIPS APP. Callers are never asked to give their names or required to testify in court. If a caller’s tip leads to an arrest, the recovery of drugs, or stolen property they could be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,500.