BALTIMORE — Residents in a West Baltimore community are asking City leaders to help with the crime in the area.
A 16-year-old was standing inside Mama’s Place Restaurant, in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood, when he was shot in the arm.
Several bullets sprayed through the window of the restaurant around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.
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The teenager had to wave down police officers in front of the restaurant before being taken and treated at an area hospital. He is expected to recover.
People in the community are pushing for heavier police presence.
The shooter took off and has not been arrested.
“We definitely need help with the crime,” said Lynn Harris, President of the Sandtown-Winchester Improvement Association.
Harris told WMAR-2 News was not surprised by yet another violent incident in the community, especially another shooting involving a youth.
“It is sad you know we have too many young people being killed,” Harris said.
Harris believes that because they live in the Sandtown community, one of the most dangerous areas in West Baltimore, their needs sometimes get ignored.
“We’re not a Fells Point. We’re not a Federal Hill, and we are treated accordingly, and we are not treated equally as those other communities are when it comes to safety,” Harris said.
Harris believes providing more activities for the youth could be part of the answer.
“Instead of having just basketball and pool, we need other things constructive things to help these youth,” Harris said.
Harris also wants a larger police presence in the community that will help detour people from committing these violent crimes.
“Larger police presence will help to change that, along with a socio-economic or educational needs of the community, it’s not being addressed,” Harris said.
