2 Die in Durham Shootout

Within seconds Wednesday, Durham marked its 39th and 40th murders. They occurred during a midnight apartment robbery, when intruder and victim shot each other to death.

Police identified the intruder as Diron Christopher Cannady, 23, also known as Diron Pounds. Richard L. Reid, 25, was also killed.

The shootout occurred at Trinity Place Apartments at 310 W. Trinity Ave. Police said two armed masked men kicked in the door of a second-floor apartment. While one gunman dealt with a man and woman on a livingroom sofa, the other went to a rear bedroom occupied by another couple. The man in the bedroom grabbed his own gun and exchanged fire.

Reid, who lived in the apartment with his younger brother Corey, was shot several times and died at the scene.

Cannady was carried by his partner out of the apartment, but the man left Cannady on the second-story balcony, and then ran off. He remains at large.

The other three occupants of the apartment were not physically injured.

The 40 slayings in Durham are a record -- five more than the city recorded in all of 1995.

Tonight, Durham Congregations in Action is holding a forum for anyone interested in voicing their concerns about growing violence in the city. The forum starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Watts Street Baptist Church.