By Stephanie Butler
CAMBRIDGE – The neighborhood is different - children are running around, playing games and laughing. Parents help themselves to generous helpings of food. Two months later, the somber mood permeating the neighborhood has lifted and residents happily participate in the fifth annual Area 4 Pride Day.
The mood was the result of a series of five shootings took place over three weeks this summer in the Area 4 neighborhood. None of the shootings were random.
For the first six months of 2008 the number of aggravated assaults was up by 13 percent compared to the same period last year.
Aan aggravated assault is “an unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury.” This type of assault is usually accompanied by the use of a weapon, including guns, according to the 2007 annual Cambridge Police Department report.
In the first six months of 2008, the number was up by 13 percent, with the majority occurring in Area 4.
Area 4 has the highest minority population (60 percent) and the highest poverty level in the city (23 percent), according to the 2000 U.S. Census.
These factors, as well as the high population density rate can contribute to increased crime activity, according to the police report.
“In each case, the target/purpose is specific and they have appeared to be retaliatory in nature,” according to the report.
The first incident occurred on Aug. 19, when shots were fired on Columbia Street. No one was hurt, although a vehicle was damaged by the shots.
Similar shootings occurred on Aug. 24 and 25, and on Sept. 2, with one arrest and no victims.
The only incident with a victim occurred on Aug. 20, when a 17-year-old boy who was riding his bike on York Street was shot in the hip. The victim was a deliberate target, according to the report.
Mayor Denise Simmons, a resident of the area, issued a report on Sept. 5 addressing the shootings, saying that the police do not think the shootings are gang-related, but it is some kind of “territorial violence."
The shootings occurred at the same time "during a similar spike in activity" in Somerville, Medford and Woburn and they may have been connected.
Simmons also said that the police have increased their presence in the neighborhood, and that she hopes a station can be installed in Area 4 to reduce the amount of crime.
In response to the violence, the Cambridge Police Department and Mayor Denise Simmons helped set up a community meeting
Margaret Fuller House, a local community organization also participated in setting up the meeting, with the help of Area 4 coordinator Ardeene Goodridge.
“Her job is to build community, and she did that by setting up the community meeting where residents could talk about the incidents,” Barbara Kibler, executive director of the organization, said.
The House is continuing to provide services to the neighborhood to combat the violence, including a new initiative to aid “young at-risk adults” ages 18-35 in getting jobs, Kibler said.
CAMBRIDGE – The neighborhood is different - children are running around, playing games and laughing. Parents help themselves to generous helpings of food. Two months later, the somber mood permeating the neighborhood has lifted and residents happily participate in the fifth annual Area 4 Pride Day.
The mood was the result of a series of five shootings took place over three weeks this summer in the Area 4 neighborhood. None of the shootings were random.
For the first six months of 2008 the number of aggravated assaults was up by 13 percent compared to the same period last year.
Aan aggravated assault is “an unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury.” This type of assault is usually accompanied by the use of a weapon, including guns, according to the 2007 annual Cambridge Police Department report.
In the first six months of 2008, the number was up by 13 percent, with the majority occurring in Area 4.
Area 4 has the highest minority population (60 percent) and the highest poverty level in the city (23 percent), according to the 2000 U.S. Census.
These factors, as well as the high population density rate can contribute to increased crime activity, according to the police report.
“In each case, the target/purpose is specific and they have appeared to be retaliatory in nature,” according to the report.
The first incident occurred on Aug. 19, when shots were fired on Columbia Street. No one was hurt, although a vehicle was damaged by the shots.
Similar shootings occurred on Aug. 24 and 25, and on Sept. 2, with one arrest and no victims.
The only incident with a victim occurred on Aug. 20, when a 17-year-old boy who was riding his bike on York Street was shot in the hip. The victim was a deliberate target, according to the report.
Mayor Denise Simmons, a resident of the area, issued a report on Sept. 5 addressing the shootings, saying that the police do not think the shootings are gang-related, but it is some kind of “territorial violence."
The shootings occurred at the same time "during a similar spike in activity" in Somerville, Medford and Woburn and they may have been connected.
Simmons also said that the police have increased their presence in the neighborhood, and that she hopes a station can be installed in Area 4 to reduce the amount of crime.
In response to the violence, the Cambridge Police Department and Mayor Denise Simmons helped set up a community meeting
Margaret Fuller House, a local community organization also participated in setting up the meeting, with the help of Area 4 coordinator Ardeene Goodridge.
“Her job is to build community, and she did that by setting up the community meeting where residents could talk about the incidents,” Barbara Kibler, executive director of the organization, said.
The House is continuing to provide services to the neighborhood to combat the violence, including a new initiative to aid “young at-risk adults” ages 18-35 in getting jobs, Kibler said.
The Oct. 6 neighborhood Pride Day was also sponsored by the Margaret Fuller House.
The investigation of the shooting incidents is still under way, according to the police report.
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