INDIANAPOLIS — Police in the city are off to a busy 2020 and an even busier February.
While it's only the third day of the month, investigators are already looking into four homicides with the most recent happening Monday morning when a man was shot and killed at an east side apartment complex.
"It's concerning. It is also very disappointing," Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department public information officer Aaron Hamer said.
Just after 10:30 a.m., Hamer arrived at the Rowney Terrace Apartments in the 1300 block of Riley Place. While telling RTV6 a man died after being shot at the complex, Hamer didn't hesitate to point out that crime, specifically murders, seem to be happening far too often.
"It is homicide No. 20 for us," he said. "We have a lot of ways we could handle disagreements in the city, and a lot of individuals who determine to use violence, and it's very disheartening."
The Rev. Charles Harrison, who operates the Ten Point Coalition, said the numbers don't lie.
"This is certainly a very troubling trend," he said. "We are well ahead of last year's pace, and it looks like if we don't slow down, we are certainly going to break another homicide record."
Harrison's solution? Like Hamer, Harrison thinks it comes down to resolving issues without resorting to reaching for a trigger.
"We gotta take the conflict resolution to the streets," Harrison said.
He believes people pick up guns hastily out of frustration and the only way to reduce violence is to meet them where they are.
"If they are hanging out on the street corners or on the blocks, then that's where we need to be in addressing these issues," Harrison said. "You hear on the streets what's going on and who might be beefing with one another."
Harrison wants to squash the beef before it leads to murder and grieving families are left to bury more victims. He said breaking the cycle is the only way to make a change.
