There was a shooting off the downtown mall early Sunday morning, as reported by Charlottesville’s The Daily Progress. The shooting killed one and left two hospitalized at the UVA hospital. Reports indicate that the shooting transpired close to the start of the Downtown Mall, not far from the intersection of Main Street and Route 631.
At the time, no arrests have been made, though Charlottesville police hypothesize that the shooter and the victims were likely acquaintances. This is one of several shootings in the past two months, and also not the only one with unidentified offenders.
In September alone, there were 6 reports of shots fired to the Charlottesville police, and 5 more in the first half of October alone. This most recent incident is the second of those 11 instances in which no offender has been identified.
Aidan, our youngest daughter (UVA’17) was back in Charlottesville for a sorority sister’s wedding this past weekend. The “after party party” was on the Mall at a bar next to where the shooting was. The girls heard the shots. The restaurant owner told everyone to get away from the windows, step back in the restaurant, and await the police. If they’d been next door, my daughter or her friends could have been innocent bystanders shot or killed.
Due to massive police defunding by the mayor and lax criminal prosecutions by the Progressive DA, criminals are running free in Charlottesville. Our college town has become a microcosm of the Blue cities across America where criminals are coddled and let back on the street due to cashless bail, while victims rights are ignored. I live in Baltimore where we have the 3rd highest murder rate per capita in the US. This must stop.
I trust this shooting will be a wake up call for the City Council, mayor, and voters. November can be the start of the change.
Let us hope!