BALTIMORE — Marked squad cars and uniformed police officers surround the parking lot of the 7-Eleven in the 4400 block of Belair Road after a double shooting, which claimed the lives of both victims.
What you won’t find here is any sense of safety.
“It’s been quite a few shootings up here within the last month,” said one woman who did not wish to be identified, “I have two kids and, you know, I don’t even let them walk up and down the street by themselves, you know?”
Amidst the ongoing violence, the store had even approved the placement of a mobile, blue light camera system on the lot to no avail.
“Cameras are never going to stop nothing? How are cameras going to stop something?” said a man, identifying himself as Vernon Smith, who adds that even if you put an officer in every block, it wouldn’t stop all of the bloodshed, “Even if it’s not you directly getting impacted by the streets of violence, but you can be indirectly impacted, you know? That’s just how it is. Like I could be walking with this dog, and somebody could kill me just to take it. I could be doing anything and somebody could kill me.”
No motive, no suspects and no obvious clues in the 20th and 21st homicides of the year.
Police say neither of the victims had any identification on them and for now, they’re considered John Does.
“I feel for them and my heartfelt condolences out to them, like it’s just crazy,” said the unidentified woman who lives down the street from the shooting scene, “I just wish more of our guys would just walk away, and I feel like it would save lives.”
