Harrisburg police are investigating six shootings that occurred within a 48-hour period this weekend and left one person dead and five others injured.
Harrisburg Police Commissioner Thomas Carter said all of the shootings were isolated incidents, each apparently unrelated to the others, and the general public is not in any danger.
The victims ranged in age from 18 to early 40s. Police held a news conference on the shootings Monday, but did not publicly identify any of the dead or wounded.
Carter and police Sgt. Kyle Gautsch said they don’t believe gang violence, drug activity or the hot weather motivated the shootings.
In each case, police said, it appears the shooters and their victims knew each other.
“It just has to do with controlling people and what people do,” Carter said.
The first shooting happened around 11:30 a.m. on Friday in the first block of North Summit Street in the Allison Hill section of the city. The victim’s injuries were described as non-life threatening.
The second happened at North 18th and Park streets at 7:45 p.m. Friday. Police said the injuries suffered by person who was shot were not life-threatening.
The third shooting was the one that left one person dead. It occurred at 8:40 p.m. on Friday in the 300 block of South 13th Street, a neighborhood that Gautsch said has been plagued with criminal activity for the 15 years he has been with the department.
The Dauphin County Coroner’s office said they were not releasing any further information Monday morning.
The fourth shooting took place in the 1900 block of State Street around 12:30 a.m. Sunday. The person who was shot was “in pretty serious condition at the time of his transport” to the hospital but is expected to recover, Gautsch said.
Less than two hours later, police were called to the 300 block of Herr Street in midtown for another shooting. (Initially, it was reported to be in the 600 block of Herr Street). The male who was shot was hospitalized for his injuries but has since been discharged, he said.
Details of the last shooting of the weekend, which took place before 4 a.m. Sunday, are sketchy. The victim transported himself to the hospital but has not cooperated with police in sharing the location of the shooting. Police, however, believe it happened on Radnor Street in the uptown area.
Carter said this is not the first time the capital city has had that many shootings in a short time frame but it is concerning. He spoke of the toll it took on his officers to respond to each crime scene and conduct a thorough investigation, but said they did an excellent job.
“We just want the general public to know that we’re out there and we’re taking care of business,” Carter said. “We’re going to continue to do that.”
As for his officers coming off a busy 48 hours, Carter said, “I just hope that tonight my guys get some sleep.”