NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — News 2 is tracking a violent weekend in Nashville after nine people were shot, including one who was killed.
Metro police confirmed they responded to at least eight shooting scenes all beginning Friday night. The shootings spanned across the city and included Edgehill, Antioch, North, East and South Nashville.
A particularly brazen shooting took place around 4:30 Saturday morning in Antioch. A man walked out of his home as two young men were attempting to break into cars. The suspects opened fire on the 55-year-old, leaving behind more than a dozen shell casings.
District 28 Councilmember Tanaka Vercher was disturbed by the outbreak of gun violence.
“It’s definitely unnerving, but unfortunately for our community, it’s becoming the norm,” Vercher said.
Over the course of the weekend, officers also responded to a juvenile whose head was grazed by a bullet after a fight broke out in Hermitage.
“It’s horrible, especially a shooting crime is very devastating. But Nashville’s not immune to the national trend in violent crimes going on across the country. So I think we have to tackle it like every other city is doing,” said Ben Freeland, owner of Freeland Auto in southeast Nashville.
Freeland is on the board of Crossings Nashville Action Partnership. The organization aims to reduce crime by organizing neighborhood patrols and providing other resources.
“We have training and job opportunities for folks to better themselves, we combat homelessness, there’s a lot of things that go into this. And I think when we’re working together and we partner with our police department, we accomplish a lot more,” Freeland said.
At the end of the day, Vercher believes more resources are needed to solve the city’s gun violence. Vercher has advocated for adding a 9th police precinct in Antioch, however, she feels the project has not taken off in a timely fashion. Vercher also called for a larger police presence in South Nashville.
“You name it, public safety, infrastructure, it has not kept pace with the growth of the city. And we keep making these other projects more of a priority,” Vercher said. “We talk about stadiums, but we don’t talk about public safety.”
If you have information on any of these shootings, tips can be submitted anonymously by calling Nashville Crime Stoppers at 615-74-CRIME.