North Texans thinking twice about nights in Deep Ellum after 4 injured in shooting
DALLAS — Whether it's for the bars, the food, or the live music, you will likely see crowds in the entertainment district of Deep Ellum.
But Sunday morning, violence erupted on the corner of Elm Street and N. Crowdus Street.
Shortly before 3 a.m., Dallas Police say gunshots rang out leaving four men between the ages of 17 and 35 injured.
All were taken to the hospital. The youngest victim, a 17-year-old is in critical condition. Police say the shooting stemmed from a sidewalk fight and was not a random incident.
"As a parent it's sad, it's sad that it comes down to that because actually we bring our kids out here a lot at night," said Dallas resident Jeremiah Herrera.
Herrera was spending Sunday in Deep Ellum with his sons and dog.
He says violence like this makes him think twice about staying out late in Deep Ellum.
"Nowadays around 9 o'clock we try to leave here before the sun goes down for that reason, " said Herrera. "It's just a lot of eggheads ruin it for everybody."
Q Napier who lives down the street also heads home when it gets dark.
"It's unfortunate because like I said living out here, it gets a bad wrap it's not really as bad as it may seem," said Napier.
Back in 2022, the Deep Ellum Foundation announced a new safety plan for the community--- including more police officers on patrol, additional surveillance cameras, a 24-hour command center staffed with both private security and Dallas Police, and a DPD Task Force specifically for Deep Ellum.
"That's why it's a little bit surprising because if you are around here at night, there's heavy police presence they got parts of it lit up now so it's definitely different than it was a few months back," said Napier.
This shooting happened just a block away from where two people were shot and killed at a bar back in March of 2023.
Police say they are continuing to investigate Sunday morning's shooting but have not made any arrests or identified any suspects.
*Initial information from the police department reported one person died as a result of the shooting. The story has been corrected to show all four victims were injured.