US

DC Plagued By Violent Crime In Another Bloody Weekend

REUTERS/Larry Downing

Daily Caller News Foundation logo
Steve Birr Vice Reporter
Font Size:

Seven shootings and three stabbings left two dead in Washington, D.C., over the weekend in an ongoing pattern of rising violent crimes.

The violence ignited Friday with a stabbing incident in Washington Highlands. The victim suffered non-fatal injuries and the suspect in the stabbing is known to police. A shooting in Capitol Heights Friday afternoon left an unidentified man wounded, however authorities took him to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries, reports WUSA9.

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) confirmed two additional stabbings Friday night and Saturday, however the identities and conditions of the victims as well as information on the assailant is unknown. (RELATED: DC Residents Want Answers As Rising Violence, Shootings Plague The District)

Two shootings on Saturday left one dead and another injured. An unidentified person fatally shot 22-year-old Jarell Walker of Suitland, Maryland Saturday night in the area of Anacostia. Police arrived on scene to find Walker suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Authorities took him to an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Police launched a homicide investigation and are asking members of the community to come forward with information, according to the MPD.

Four separate shootings in the District Sunday left two wounded and one dead. Police confirmed a shooting in Lincoln Heights, Grant Park and another near South Waterfront on K Street. Police responded to reports of a shooting in Capital Heights, finding a man dead, however the MPD has not released details on the identity of the deceased or information regarding the suspect, reports WJLA.

The District is off to a violent year, with over 50 confirmed homicides across the city. D.C. saw a staggering 53 percent spike in the murder rate in 2015, the highest rate in eight years. The alarming spike in homicides is spilling into 2016, tracking closely with last year’s figures. (RELATED: Spiraling Violence Leads DC Citizen To Sue DOJ)

“Sometimes, we just scratch our heads,” D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier told The Washington Post in May. “We feel like there’s a revolving door for violent offenders. It’s very frustrating for us because we see the victim, and we see the impact on the victim.”

Much of the violence stems from Wards 6 and 7, which are dwarfing 2015 crime statistics so far this year. Rattled residents in Ward 7 are witnessing a tripling in the homicide rate compared to 2015, accounting for nearly half of all homicides in the District this year.

Follow Steve on Twitter

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.