16-year-old killed in 1 of 3 shootings in Durham

On the shooting shooting incidents that we had yesterday evening

Um provide you what updates we are able to provide

Uh please keep in mind that these are all still

active investigations

So information may change as those information as the investigations

go along

We will provide appropriate updates as we have information available

after this press conference

We will take some questions after the press conference

We would like to keep those related to the shootings

and the uh the shooting incidents that we're talking about

Um I just I do want to acknowledge the um

executive command staff behind us as well as city management

that's come to uh uh attend this uh press conference

as well

Uh Chief Andrews will be speaking and I will turn

the mic over to her

Thank you

Thank you Captain Packer

So good morning

Um we had a very uh tragic loss of life

yesterday in in our great city

And so before I start any of this I do

want to remember that that child that is no longer

with us was someone's brother someone's son

Um he was something to someone

So um our our thoughts certainly and and prayers for

comfort go out to his family

So I'll just start by just giving you what you

you have already which is just a brief breakdown and

timeline of the shootings

I will be adding some information to that

Um Obviously all of these um shootings are still under

investigation

So there will be some questions that I can't answer

Not because I don't want to

It's just because we don't have those answers yet

Ok

So shortly after 4 p.m. yesterday um in the 1200

block of Truman street officers were alerted to a shooting

once they arrived they located a 16 year old victim

who had been shot in the chest

The officers began to administer CPR in hopes of saving

his life

Um The victim was transported to a local hospital and

uh there he was pronounced deceased at the scene

Within moments after that particular shooting we were alerted uh

patrol officers on scene were alerted to a black male

that was seen running from that scene with a handgun

Um that individual was um we we feel that he

was alone

He wasn't with anyone

He got into a Red Chrysler Sebring

Um officers then started a pursuit of that vehicle shortly

after the pursuit started officers determined that it was unsafe

Um Both for our it was unsafe to continue the

chase due to the driving behavior of the suspects and

they disregarded the s the chase

They terminated it for concern out of their own safety

as well as the safety of the general public

That same vehicle we later found out was stolen

It was recovered in the 600 block of Hardy Street

and we were able to process that vehicle and obtain

some evidence from that vehicle

And I'll just say anyone with information in that particular

case is asked to contact investigator Burke Stresser and you

all have the number

It's 560 4440 extension 29538 and certainly contact crime stoppers

as well within moments and maybe a little less than

an hour

Uh Fayetteville and Linwood Avenue officers were alerted to a

shooting near that intersection

They did not locate any victims on that scene

However short time later an adult male and another male

who had been shot arrived at one of our local

hospitals in a private vehicle

Both of those vehicles had sustained injuries that are non

life threatening

A third male walked into the same hospital about the

same time

Uh this male also sustained non life threatening injuries

And um and at that time we did not know

where he had been

He had been shot

Investigators working with officers on the scene um looking at

evidence were able to determine that this particular male um

had been shot and the other two had also been

shot at Fayetteville in Lynwood

As a result investigators have charged one of the victims

in that shooting

Devante Patterson 31 with possession of firearm by felon

Um as a result of watching video from from that

area 300 the 300 block of West Pettigrew Street shortly

after six pm

Durham police Department officers responded to the sound of shots

called in in the 300 block of West Pettigrew a

short time after that an adult male who had been

shot arrived at the bus terminal on foot

That victim was also transported to a local hospital with

injuries that are believed to be non life threatening

It's my understanding this morning that the injuries are non

life threatening and he is in stable condition

A black Honda Accord was seen leaving that scene which

we later we now know through investigation that that Honda

Accord has was stolen out of Holly Springs

I don't right now know when it was stolen

Um but it was seen leaving that scene

So that's gonna be one of our suspect vehicles or

vehicles of interest that we are going to try and

and uh and find

So all of these shooting investigations are active

There's a lot to process here a lot that we

still don't know that we don't have answers to

Um I will say that our homicide victim from Truman

street and this is probably one of the most tragic

things in addition to him no longer being with us

Um his brother was shot not even a week ago

Um on Truman Street and um so I will stop

there and open it up for questions

Good morning

Hey um just a couple of things

Some of how many people total were shot yesterday

So we had five people total with the one homicide

Oh sorry

Hey he was thinking so so we had Truman and

then we had the three people Fayetteville and Lynnwood and

then we had Pettigrew

under investigation but any connections here

So what I can say is right now it's still

very early

We have not had any indication that they are all

three connect or all of the shootings are connected with

each other

Um But again I don't know definitively because we have

not gotten that far along in our investigation and I

can hear in your voice I mean I know you

I think she would be hard pressed to come to

the podium after a night like that but talk about

what you're feeling right now

I am sad

I am very angry

I am you know there's a lot of questions that

I have about where have we gone wrong either as

parents as guardians and you know in what we do

in what our community has or has not done to

support these these individuals that are involved in crimes that

either are victims or have um per you know perpetrated

these crimes

It it is and then to see the toll that

it takes on my staff um you know I the

radio last night was on fire to say the very

least we had officers that were asking for help

We had to figure out about my staff the watch

commander the investigators we pulled held everyone over

Um it takes a tremendous toll

It takes a tremendous toll and and you know and

it's and it and it and that's also the frustration

is when is when will it stop When will our

our kids when will these adults start thinking about their

actions before choosing to pick up a gun and shoot

and kill each other Those are you've heard me say

these are very adult actions adult behavior

And um and and quite honestly I would encourage the

guardians of these Children our parents um the village right

that we often talk about many of us we had

a village of people right Have these conversations check in

with them don't just allow them to be on the

street just because it might be convenient

And chief we're coming up on a busy weekend in

Durham

Um You mentioned you all are spread thin

The radio was chaotic

Are you concerned about lots of people coming into town

this weekend And what's your message to people in Durham

right now as we go into a busy spring weekend

Thank you for that

So I would say I'm not concerned about the safety

of our community and I know that that is um

you know that's that sounds a bit odd considering we

we had the shootings that we had

Um you know I I'm not concerned about their safety

because I know that the work that my officers are

doing right now to try and identify those that are

involved and take enforcement action

Um You know Durham is a despite what has happened

Durham is a beautiful place

We are vibrant community

Um Don't wanna be defined by this moment by the

last 24 hours

Um But I just want us to to remember that

Durham is safe

Um And I know that there are plenty of people

that will disagree with me and most of them don't

live in Durham

Usually we uh in these press releases we get a

little message that says you know the the the victim

and the suspects they were known to each other

Um We didn't get that yesterday

Uh And you know kind of building off that last

point you know why shouldn't we be worried Um You

know if we are d residents right now in some

of these areas especially uh last night one of them

taking place right near the American Tobacco Campus um which

is a place for for tourists and and uh and

and fun

Well I think you should be worried at the fact

that this is happening in our community and all not

because it happened near the American Tobacco Campus right Um

Crime can happen anywhere we've seen that we've seen it

in surrounding communities

But I think the fact that it's happening and it

continues to happen that's what we should worry about

Not that it happened near American tobacco that everyone near

American tobacco is in danger

Right There are people in communities that live um every

day within communities that that see this kind of violence

Um We shouldn't just be talking about it simply because

it happens in one area

Um We need to continue to have the conversation

We should all be very concerned because this is our

community

Um And so that's that's you know that's kind of

my answer to you know if if any of the

suspects or or uh uh the victims were known to

each other or that any of this was targeted so

to speak

So I don't know any of that right now

Um You know we we are still working I just

had AAA big debrief with um investigators uh staff that

are working these cases that um that are still working

it

So as soon as we as soon as we know

more um certainly I will we'll we'll update you we'll

send it out as soon as possible

One of my only other things is there's there

We we just talked a lot about how we should

be concerned for people who are being you know who

are who are falling victim to these incidents

But uh more so for my safety uh if if

I'm a person uh living or traveling through Durham um

what do I need to do Well if you see

something suspicious you report it right

If something strikes odd to you report it

Um I think to me and and I many officers

will tell you that if it doesn't sit well with

you it's ok to call 911 and report it but

make sure you continue that pattern of behavior in surrounding

communities as well

I I think we had yeah sorry

Excuse me

So we we have not seen a pattern or a

trend and it really is too early right now for

us to be able to say that there is a

trend here that this is either a trend that will

continue or it's just happening kind of in a pocket

But as soon as we know more we'll right now

we're striving to be as transparent as possible because we

know that in transparency um that that helps restore balance

of safety and feeling of safety um with our community

Um And so we're gonna we're gonna put out information

as much as we as often as possible

OK

Chief the young man who passed away

Yes

And you said another um child was it in the

in his family was also shot recently

Can you share his name Any information that you have

about him Um He's a juvenile

Um It's his brother

So both were juveniles

Yes

16

Do you suspect gang activity was involved in any of

these shootings So I don't know just yet

Um our intelligence unit is upstairs working um and and

processing names and who who is connected to what and

who was involved where and is there is there more

of something that we're seeing Um as far as what

we talked about as a trend can you recover two

vehicles Any firearms So we recovered um we recovered the

one vehicle the Sebring

Um and we um are looking for that stolen Honda

Accord

Um so we've recovered evidence have not recovered a firearm

Um chief in our conversation with the mayor last night

he brought up Shotspotter

Some of these shootings were in that former footprint and

I know it's something you had asked the city to

keep and they didn't any thoughts on that right now

So I I will say this and then I'll answer

your question

Um I um Shotspotter um is shot Sautter has been

talked about a lot

Um and what I will say is Shotspotter would have

alerted us to the shooting just as we got 911

calls in about the shooting

Yes it was in a shot spotter area

Um but I I don't think that the relevancy to

shot spotter in these shootings is a is an equal

connection to make

Yes it was in the area

But but we also knew that going into the pilot

of shot spotter because we determined that was the highest

concentration of our shootings in the city of Durham which

is how that area was determined

But shot spotter was a resource and a tool and

whether we had shot spotter now or you know and

we don't have it now

It's not going to keep us from doing the fullest

investigation

The mayor is here

I mean how did I miss you So focused

I'm sorry

No please

You I know you you came back

I did

Thank you

Uh I'm here to support our chief and in our

law enforcement as they process this investigation

Um to your specific question you know uh on my

side of things it's a policy discussion it's a policy

matter

Uh And on their side is an operation

So my um my comments around shot spotter is it's

just another resource and uh I I personally and professionally

I don't think that we're in a position to take

away resources or anything

You know I just I I look at just like

how I look at public safety as a holistic approach

you know and that's just a policy dispute or a

policy debate rather amongst policymakers but also it's amongst the

community you know

So as I've said before you know there are folks

that do not experience this on a daily basis and

there are folks that just experience this pain on a

daily basis out right outside their window and one side

of that conversation folks to come to City Hall the

other side is not

And what I'm saying now despite how hard things are

you're gonna have to find a way to make your

rea your reality heard to policymakers because we're making uh

I I we were elected to lead

But unfortunately a lot of what we're doing is you

know it it it is really convincing when City Hall

chambers are packed with a very unified voice and there

is a voice or a segment in our community that's

not really present

And what I'm saying to them is I know things

might be hard

You might be at work you may not be able

to get there but you're gonna have to find a

way now to make sure your voice is heard

So when I make those comments around shots spot or

anything else um just like affordable housing and affordable living

anything else it's more of a policy discussion that's not

to incorporate any operational exercises in the work that my

colleagues here are doing o this in there

You you've had 13 hours you know to to process

this a little bit more

And we just heard from the chief that not only

do we have a a 16 year old victim but

just a week before someone else in this person's family

was killed shot shot not not killed who cares whatever

at this point you know also this one family victim

of horrible gun violence is is uh a number of

folks were yesterday

Do you just some more thoughts this morning Yeah I

I stated it you know instead of the city the

data speaks for itself we have to do more

The common the commonality here is the fact that these

are all mostly young black boys under the age of

20 and our uh the victims both victims of the

uh of the actual act and the ones who are

committing it are are just is within the same face

a younger version of me and that's why it's personal

So II I for me this isn't political this isn't

uh I I don't really give a damn about what

any organizing group talks about

This is a personal reality that that really frustrates me

Uh So that is my approach to this

Uh So um I don't I don't care about 501

C three S or LLC s in a in a

name

What I care about is how do we stop the

younger Leos from getting shot on these streets and from

getting killed and many of them are former students

Then may the last shooting

Uh The one that we were just talking about both

on Truman street you know a lot of these shootings

that we've seen recently you know happening in the same

area as Shotspotter area um coverage area as well

But how do you tell the people who live in

these places right now that they're safe that they can

even walk walk out on the street

If two juveniles are getting shot on the same two

brothers shot on the same street in less than a

week

I think that you know and I I won't speak

for the cheap but III I know it sounds weird

when we say you know Durham is actually safe

Um And but then you don't hear definitively that these

things are connected but at the same time you know

as our law enforcement agency is doing this investigation you

know I I want you all to give them grace

to finish that process you know and and and then

we'll know if it's all connected or not

But as of right now you know there there's not

we have a scene where people are just driving by

randomly shooting people on the street

This is not these are not just like just I

don't know just folks just making random acts but are

these incidents connected We don't know

I don't know

I'm I'm I'm here because I wanna make sure I

support my chief and support our our our law enforcement

agencies as they do this hard work you know

So uh but you know we're not seeing this in

every neighborhood in Durham

We're not seeing it all over Durham

But what we are seeing is behaviors that are responsive

to the environment that is conducive when you have certain

circumstances that present themselves this way

That's why you hear when you talk about gun violence

you hear us talk about housing hear us talk about

accessibility

You hear us talk about transit you know that it's

all connected and if we have a neighborhood that produces

those circumstances these are some of the outcomes that you're

gonna get

That's the issue with public housing when it was created

decades ago

This is what you create

So we're trying our best to have much more of

an inclusive city but it takes time and it takes

resources

So that's why I keep going back to taking things

away

Not interested

Thank you

May I don't want to take this

No you're no you're more than welcome to stand here

So II I just wanna just one more question from

each of you and then we wanna just wrap it

up

OK

And I heard you Marel

Thank you

Can you just talk about on a night like last

night Um How spread then are your officers I know

you have some vacancies in the department

Um What is it like Mm So um from where

I was sitting at home right I I can only

tell you that um the officers are are tired they're

they're tired but they know that this is their calling

and this is what they wanna do and they want

to do it here in this city

And so they are they are committed to to answering

the call they are committed to investigating every single crime

Um they are committed to to justice for the 16

year old

Um that was taken from from our from us last

night

Uh It's tough

I mean I just I don't you know I don't

know of any other way to summarize it for them

but by saying that it's tough but they are they

are heroes because they continue to do the work and

you know and and and they don't they don't make

any bones about their commitment to the city

So thank you

Um I don't we can get it for you and

it's yes we'll we'll get you we'll get you that

exact information

Is there any indicator at all that these shootings are

related to any other shooting uh that we've seen this

year so far Investigations right now still we we're focused

on what happened last night and whether they're they're connected

to each other

I'm certain if they're connected to other shootings that always

unravels and we always can make that determination

11

Yes that's correct

What is your message to the people pulling the trigger

in these situations We will send you to prison for

the rest of your life

We have the means and the ability to do it

I don't care how old you are

We have federal partners that are committed to ending this

violence in this city and we will send you away

any

Did you have anyone else All right

Thank you

All so very much

I appreciate it

Thank you for being here today

Thanks

I'm sure

Good night

So all right we'll walk you up come

He said

good morning

It was not life

We can find it we respond to the emails

I'll find that that specific one it out

I mean probably not gonna say more than like you

know it was the same complex

I don't know like it's meant to be there so

I didn't really