Police: 4 Injured, 1 Dead In Several Mpls. Shootings This Weekend
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Police are investigating a man's death in north Minneapolis and a two other shootings near downtown that have left four people injured.
Officers were called to the 4000 block of Humboldt Avenue north around 8 p.m. Friday night. Someone called 911 to say a man had shot himself. A man in his 40s was found dead inside a home. Police interviewed a woman in her 30s and noticed some inconsistencies with what she was telling them. She was arrested and booked on probable cause murder.
Police say this is one of the worst summers of crime in the city, but this is a trend they're seeing in several major cities across the country.
"We'll continue to do everything we can do to combat crime. We're allocating resources, we're shifting resources to make sure that these core functions of law enforcement are being met," said John Elder, with MPD.
Police say three people were shot and injured around 4:30 a.m. on Saturday at the intersection of 5th Street and 1st Avenue. in downtown Minneapolis.
Police say there have been seven times the number of gunshot victims this year, compared to this time last year.
"Our officers are responding to calls in every area of this city without exception," Elder said.
Elder says his officers will never refuse a call, but he says right now they're short staffed and having to allocate officers throughout the city to meet crime response needs.
"We've had some people go out on medical disabilities, and we've had some people decide that they'd rather work for a smaller department or a different department. Every single job has people leaving, Minneapolis police department is no different," Elder said.
Linda Madson and her husband spent Saturday morning playing tennis on the courts at the intersection of 38th and Bryant in south Minneapolis.
This is the same spot where shots were reported on social media as being fired just before 4:00 a.m. on Saturday.
"We feel safe in our city and in our neighborhood and when there's issues that police are needed for they seem to be there," Madson said.
She's lived in south Minneapolis for over 25 years and hasn't sensed the rise in crime this summer.
"I wouldn't say that this summer feels any different than in the past," Madson said.
Despite the recent statistics, Madson says a rise in crime is not a reason for her to move out of the city.
"I'm not someone who spends a lot of time examining those and figuring out whether that's a reason to stay or go. We love this area, we have kids in public schools, Minneapolis is a beautiful city," Madson said.