HAMPTON, Va. — We are halfway through the year, yet police in Hampton say we are two murders away from matching the record number of homicides from last year.
On Sunday, police investigated two shootings a short distance from each other, one on Sacramento Drive,and another on Wendell Drive.
While community youth were not involved in this recent string of shootings in Hampton, police say they’ve been making connections with the young people who live in these neighborhoods that see gun violence.
Sacramento Drive in Hampton is a half mile long street that has seen close to 10 violent instances since 2015, including one from Sunday where a man suffered serious injuries from gunshot wounds.
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That same day, police investigated a second shooting on Wendell Drive, where a woman died from her injuries.
Despite it being June, the most recent shootings are causing Hampton’s homicide rate to near last years record, according to Sergeant Ashley Jenrette.
So far there have been 22 victims of fatal shootings, and at the end of the year last year there were 24.
Jenrette attributes some of the violence to be caused by individual groups.
In a neighborhood where there are young kids around, police say it's always a concern.
This is why programs like the J-Cap Program out of the Commonwealth Attorney's Office aims to prevent future tragedy by building a connection between police and young people.
"In our society as a whole is this snitch culture, because there’s either a level of fear concerning law enforcement or just a 'I don’t know them' or a 'I don’t know an officer that is friendly'," says Bell.
During the camp, individuals age 12 and older are introduced to different areas of law enforcement, which is a step towards a safer community.
Hampton police say they're planning on having a reset walk following these two most recent shootings.
Stay with News 3 for updates.
