By Natasha Robin | WVUE | December 30, 2020
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – “It’s getting out of control,” says a 7th Ward resident.
A carjacking unfolds at six in the morning in the 2100 block of Lapeyrouse Street.
As 2020 comes to an end, the violence that plaques the city continues.
“In a hotel in Downtown New Orleans, a gun battle raging in the halls and three people are hit, and that happens too frequently in the city,” says Rafael Goyeneche.
Rafael Goyeneche of the Metropolitan Crime Commission says New Orleans will the end the year with a 150 percent increase in carjackings, a 66 percent increase in shootings and a 66 percent increase in homicides.
“These aren’t necessarily random acts. These are individuals seeking out their targets, and they’re not afraid to use fire power that we previously saw in the old gangster movies. That’s happening on the streets right now. That’s what police have to deal with,” says Goyeneche.
“You’re talking about a life that was literally taken for no reason,” says Laricha Rousell.
Someone took 14-year-old Jamere Alfred’s life on Christmas night in the parking lot of Walgreens in New Orleans East. His parents want answers.
“Because it’s a kid, and it has to stop. The violence has to stop in New Orleans,” says John Alfred.
The NOPD created a ‘Violent Crime Abatement Investigative’ unit back in October to hand the violent crime problems, but Goyeneche says real results will likely take months, and he believes more needs to be done now.
“If the city wants to do something to stem the alarming increase in violence, they’re going to have to re-invest and provide more resources to the police department in the short term, so they can identify and arrest the people committing the violent crime,” says Goyeneche.
We reached out to the NOPD, but we were unable to get a comment today. They told us Superintendent Shaun Ferguson will hold a news conference soon to discuss the crime data and what needs to be done in the future.