Eleven reports of gunfire over four days and a fatal shooting earlier this week have Blytheville police and city officials asking residents to be more cautious when outside and to report any suspicious activity in their neighborhoods.
Jeffery Richardson, 34, was shot to death Saturday in the 200 block of South Lilly Street. Police have not made any arrests, and the killing was not related to the recent spate of shootings in the Mississippi County town of 15,000, said Capt. Scott Adams, commander of the criminal investigation division at the Blytheville Police Department.
Richardson's death was the second homicide in Blytheville this year. Last year, officers investigated eight slayings.
No one was seriously hurt in the other shootings, but a 21-year-old man was struck by gunfire May 11 and treated and released at a Blytheville hospital, Adams said.
The first shooting was reported May 11 at First and Missouri streets, where Jamion Sims was shot by an unknown assailant. An hour later, officers were called to the 500 block of East Rose Street where a resident said her home and vehicle were hit by a hail of gunfire.
Adams said officers counted 33 bullet holes in the woman's house.
At 4:30 p.m. May 11, officers were dispatched to Northeast Parkway when residents said they heard at least 10 gunshots in the area. Police found spent shell casings but no gunmen.
At 10:04 p.m. May 11, police went to the 1100 block of South Franklin, where a woman said she heard numerous gunshots. The woman told officers that she and five children got on the floor during the gunfire. Officers found at least seven bullet holes in the front of her house.
While working that case, another shooting occurred near Missouri Street, Adams said. A man drove by a home and fired a shot at a house, Adams said.
Two hours later, officers returned to East Rose Street, where a man said he heard gunshots.
Finally, at 1:46 a.m. May 12, residents called about shots fired on Holland Street. When officers arrived, they stopped a Ford Mustang traveling on Cherry Street and found a loaded 9 mm handgun in the vehicle. Police arrested a minor, Adams said.
The shootings were not related, Adams said.
"There were three different groups involved," he said. "One was over drugs, one was over a woman, and we're not sure about one yet. It's seems like it's people going back and forth in anger."
Alonzo Hicks, 64, said he's often heard gunshots at his East Rose Street home.
"When you have dope pushers around, you're going to have shootings," Hicks said. "It's usually two rivals shooting at each other.
"I'm taking each day at a time," he said when asked if he was concerned about getting shot himself. "We all have our destiny."
Mayor James Sanders said city leaders have gone on the radio to warn residents about the shootings and to urge them to report activities.
"If you see something, say something," Sanders said.
He also has spoken with community leaders and ministers.
"We're all working together," he said. "These events are when one person is angry with another. It's not random shootings. It's a situation of events and it has not escalated.
"It's something that happened and we're working on it."
Adams said a declining police force may have contributed in part to the shootings. Budget cuts have reduced Blytheville's police force from 62 officers in 2004 to 33 this year, Adams said. Salaries for Blytheville's officers also hurt retention on the force, he said. Starting pay for an officer is $28,000, Adams said. It's $36,000 for a starting officer in nearby Osceola, he said.
"Our officers are more reactive than proactive," Adams said. "We don't have enough out there."
Sanders said he has spoken with City Council members about police pay.
"We will continue to fight for all of our city employees," Sanders said. "We are concerned about our police, and we are concerned about the welfare of our citizens. We are working toward beefing up salaries for our police now."
State Desk on 05/20/2016