Weekend violence left three men shot, one dead on San Antonio's East Side. The shooting was the second weekend in a row of violence that resulted in death for that area, and it is the fourth drive-by shooting in 6 months. The San Antonio Police Department have announced a new plan that includes night-time foot patrols and increased police presence in some of the problematic pockets of that community.
For District 2 City Councilman Alan Warrick the violence is a tragedy, but he hopes people realize that isn't the East Side, it is just one small part of the East Side.
"There are pockets of the community where, let's say on New Braunfels Street between East Houston and Burleson, you have 30 percent of the crime that occurs in the district in those five or six blocks," says Warrick.
Those distinctions may be minor to the city at large but they rub long-time east siders the wrong way; many who feel the East Side is often talked about in broad terms to encapsulate an entire community.
That said, Warrick says the current flare-up in violence in his district is being taken seriously and he says he is working with SAPD and the city to encourage more police, as well as more money, for programs that help with job placements.
Guest:
- Alan Warrick, City Councilman for San Antonio's District 2
- Taj Matthews, executive director of the Claude and ZerNona Black Developmental Leadership Foundation
