HAMPTON, Va. - So far in 2023, ten people have lost their lives to gun violence in the city of Hampton. Police Chief Mark Talbot calls it a "significant increase" compared to previous years.
On Wednesday night, Talbot updated the city council on the efforts to reduce gun violence.
The city saw its latest homicide Tuesday when a woman was shot and killed on Aluminum Avenue in what Mayor Donnie Tuck said was believed to be a domestic incident.
Talbot said 20 people have been shot so far this year with ten of them dying. That's compared with 24 deaths from gun violence in all of 2022.
Gun violence has impacted members of the community.
"I literally woke up to the sound of what sounded like machine guns outside of my house," said Lisa Moore, who said the shooting of three people on Salisbury Way happened right by her home.
Mayor Tuck told News 3 he, too, has felt the impact.
"I can think of one Sunday morning I heard about 18 shots," he said.
Chief Talbot told council members the police department has put a strategy in place to try and combat the violence, including adding extra units and sending in specialty units to hotspots.
"We believe that we will certainly turn that spike around," he said.
Moore, who's lived in the city for about three years, believes more opportunities for young people would make a difference.
"I think what we need to do is give these people some alternatives and hope," she said.
City leaders are hoping things will calm down.
"We're hopeful it's going to lead to results," said Tuck.
