Dear City Manager Carlos Martinez, Mayor Tom Butt and City Council members,

Here is a briefing on the cluster of gun violence incidents over Sunday and Monday.

Yesterday there were two shootings, the second within an hour after the first.  A Shotspotter activation at 4:14 pm registering a multiple gunfire incident sent officers to the 500 block of Duboce Ave, where they found a crime scene and two subjects associated to the incident but unwilling to help.  CCSO deputies were already on scene and offered assistance. A short time later, a man suffering several non-life threatening gunshot wound injuries was dropped off at Kaiser, he to, was unwilling to help the investigation. 

Just after 5:00 pm officers were flagged down near South 6th St and Ohio Ave regarding a shooting victim.  A man suffering a single gunshot wound injury was attended to there by EMS, then taken to a local trauma center for what was believed to be a non-life threatening gunshot wound injury.  He was unwilling to help the investigation.  Officers found the nearby crime scene at South 6th St and the Greenway. 

We suspect a correlation between these crimes and one of the 3 shooting incidents from the day before (Sunday).  Accordingly, we have activated additional resources for added visible presence in neighborhoods where retaliatory shooting acts could be carried out, and we have gang experts taking on other intervention strategies.

There were 3 separate incidents late Sunday evening.  There is no evidence of a link among the three of them.  First, at 10:10 pm a Shotspotter activation registering a multiple gunfire incident followed by calls from neighbors sent officers to the 2500 block of Edmond Ave.  A man and a woman inside of a parked mini van were interrupted by two armed men trying to rob them.  The woman was shot as she ran away, the man was shot several times where he sat.  Both sustained non-life threatening injuries, but the male’s wounds resulted paralysis below the waist.  

At 10:36 pm a Shotspotter activated alerted to a multiple gunfire incident at 1 St and Nevin Ave.  Shortly thereafter, Kaiser alerted us to a walk-in shooting victim.  Daniel Diaz, 29 years, said that he was walking in the area when a dark-colored sedan containing several people rolled up on him and an occupant painted him with a laser beam.  He ran, then heard gunfire.  On projectile hit him in the foot.  He could not provide more information. 

At 11:24 pm, 44 year old Embaye Maekele Amariam (Eritrean National) was shot while standing in the lot of the parking area near building 4620 at Deliverance Temple Apartments on Potrero Ave.  Two armed suspects approached on foot, ambushed Mr. Amariam and opened fire.  They then ran to a waiting car, that sped from the area.  Mr. Amariam was taken to a local trauma center in grave condition. He was declared brain dead earlier this morning, so it is not likely that he will survive his injuries.  While his shooting was obviously targeted, it is possible that he could have been mistaken for someone else (he was wearing a hood) or a target of opportunity meant to send a message to rivals.  We are considering the possibility that this shooting could have sparked subsequent attacks that happened on Monday.

We are actively working to investigate each of these shooting incidents, and concurrently taking measures to disrupt retaliatory incidents that these occurrences could motivate.  We’ll be using help from the FBI Safe Streets Task Force, and others, if necessary.

I am available to answer any follow up questions that you may have.

Allwyn Brown
Chief of Police