'That’s where I think we start having problems, when we rely on government to solve everything,' Hewes said.
He believed parents need to keep a closer eye on their children and intervene if they discover guns. The Republican politician's staff say problems arise in some cases when apartment complexes do not have enough security. Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes, who is in his third term, agreed the gun violence in the area is an issue. 'I feel that people should be able to live together without having a barrier.' 'I don’t like walls that separate people,' she said. Retired schoolteacher Martha Lockhart-Mais, who lives near the Navy base, said one of her former students was shot and killed last year while others have been involved in other shootings. 'It makes me not want my daughter to go outside at all,' she said of her 11-year-old. Tia Mosley's 17-year-old son was killed in a drive-by shooting two years ago, and she gets anxious every time she opens Facebook and sees more reports of local violence in Gulfport. Those living and working in Gulfport, which has a population of 72,00 people, have spoken out about being struck by stray bullets and having to scramble in the city afflicted by gun violence
'We’re losing our young people too fast, too quick. 'I think not just in Gulfport - the whole coast has that problem.'
'It may not be as bad as Jackson, it may not be as bad as Memphis, Tennessee, but we’ve got that problem,' he said. Louis Gholar is president of the West Gulfport Civic Club and it organized an upcoming community meeting about ways to tackle the growing violence. JaKamori Lake, a pregnant 16-year-old, was shot and killed on April 30 in Gulfport and a 15-year-old was charged over her death.ĭays earlier Gulfport police had arrested a seventh suspect in connection with a New Year's Eve shooting in 2021, where four people were killed. Two people were injured in a shooting at a birthday party on Thursday just a few blocks from the Navy base.Ī 20-year-old man was shot dead on the same day in another incident nearby. Those living and working in parts of Gulfport, which has a population of 72,00 people, have spoken out about being struck by stray bullets and having to scramble for cover in the city afflicted by gun violence.Īround 10 years ago, there were two or three homicides reported a year but this has skyrocketed to at least 10 killings per year since 2019. John Whitfield, a pastor and CEO of workforce development non-profit Climb CDC, told NBC News: 'The optics of that are very bad. 'The force protection of our base, personnel, and families is our highest priority,' the spokesman added. The shipping containers were placed along Commission Road in October and were only meant to be a 'temporary solution'.Ī spokesman for the Navy base said the city offered assurances that it was addressing the gun violence problem but the base is now considering building a permanent concrete wall.
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