Mayor Bing: Police work nonstop after 6 killed

By DAVID N. GOODMAN
Associated Press

DETROIT (AP) - Detroit Mayor Dave Bing said reducing violent crime is his administration's top goal in the wake of a 24-hour period that was packed with gun violence and left six people dead and nine wounded around the city.

The shootings happened at nine locations between 6 a.m. Friday and 6 a.m. Saturday, police said.

From Jan. 1 through last Monday, there were 215 homicides in Detroit, up from 183 in the same period of 2010, according to police records.

"Reducing violent crime is our No. 1 priority," Bing said in a statement. "Chief (Ralph) Godbee and the men and women of the Detroit Police Department are working around the clock to bring these criminals to justice. Our community must continue to work with us to stop this kind of violence. Every resident deserves to be safe and feel safe in their neighborhood."

Among the slain was a 40-year-old man who died at a hospital after being shot and crashing at high speed into a pole Friday evening, police said. The others killed in the 24-hour span included a 16-year-old boy and four men ages 21, 35, 36 and 38.

An accidental shooting Saturday evening added to the death toll. Police said an 18-year-old and a 14-year-old were playing with a gun when it accidentally fired, killing the younger teen. The police statement doesn't make clear the gender of the teens, but The Detroit News reports that officers told the newspaper the victim was a boy.

Police arrested the 18-year-old and recovered a weapon. The Associated Press left a message with police Sunday seeking more information.

The latest round of gunfire follows other shootings this summer.

At least 20 people were shot between 6 a.m. July 29 and 6 a.m. Aug. 1, according to police crime statistics reported by the Detroit Free Press. That included a July 31 shooting that left five people injured at a backyard party.

Earlier in June, an eighth grade graduation party was shot up and three people were seriously hurt. A 15-year-old has been charged as an adult in that attack.

And last month, 3-year-old Aarie Berry was killed when a bullet pierced the front window of her family's apartment. A 21-year-old man has been charged with murder.

"Every loss of life we take very seriously," Godbee said at the time of the arrest in the girl's slaying. "But when the actions of adults, in a very irresponsible way, result in the death of a 3-year-old child who hasn't had an opportunity to experience life, we are literally outraged, and there has to be an outrage in the community relative to this type of crime."