Photo by Brandon Anderson.
Three people were fatally shot yesterday, which brings the homicide total in the District so far this year up to 97.
At approximately 12:11 p.m., 21-year-old Amari Jenkins of Southeast D.C. was fatally shot in front of the St. Luke Roman Catholic Church on the 4900 block of East Capitol Street NE. And just hours later, just after 3:30 p.m. on the 1300 block of Congress Street SE, a woman, a teenager, and a boy were all shot. The woman, 31-year-old Tenika Fontanelle of Southeast, died of her injuries, while the two juvenile boys were transported to the hospital and are in stable condition. One of the juvenile boys transported to the hospital was arrested and charged in Fontanelle’s murder.
And almost an hour after the Congress Heights shooting, 24-year-old William Conley of Northeast D.C. was gunned down in the 2700 block of 17th Street NE, in the Langdon Park neighborhood.
After yesterday’s heavy violence, Mayor Muriel Bowser and Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier arrived on the scene of the triple shooting, the Post reports. “When people say what is driving this,” Lanier said in reference to the proliferation of of violence in D.C. this summer, “it is illegal firearms in the homes and hands of the wrong people, and when children have access to firearms, bad things happen.”
Lanier also said that, in the past 30 days, officers have seized 102 illegal firearms, which she referred to as a “staggering number.” At a press conference at the site of the triple shooting, Lanier said the MPD will pay a reward of $1,000 for any tips on illegally held firearms. She also said that the MPD will activate an “all hands on deck” strategy to help combat the recent surge in violent crime in D.C.
On this day in 2014, there were a total of 72 homicides, 34.7 percent less than what the murder rate is so far this year. There was a total of 105 homicides last year and the recent surge in violent crime in the District is inching closer to surpassing that number. In 2013 and 2012, the homicide rate was 104 and 88, respectively.
Although the suspect in the Congress Heights shooting was arrested, police are still searching for suspects in the East Capitol Street and Langdon Park shooting. The MPD is offering a $25,000 reward to anyone who comes forward with information in either case. If you do have information, you should call police at (202) 727-9099 or send an anonymous tip to 50411.
