CHARLOTTE — One man was killed and a woman was seriously hurt in a shooting in east Charlotte early Tuesday morning.
Detectives with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s Homicide Unit say the incident happened around 1:42 a.m. near the Dollar Tree Plaza just off Albemarle Road.
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“This area is a bit of an area for our unsheltered population,” Maj. Gene Lim with CMPD said. “We’ve had some services out here recently within the last six to 12 months, and right now, we have very little information to go on.”
According to MEDIC, both victims were taken to the hospital where one was pronounced deceased.
Channel 9’s Eli Brand spoke with one woman who lives nearby. She says this violence points out the need for resources for another community.
“There’s not enough space for the homeless,” she said. “There’s no housing for the homeless.”
She says people experiencing homelessness live in the lot, and violence isn’t uncommon. She says more resources are needed to keep the vulnerable safe.
“The homeless have families too,” she said. “They need somewhere to stay too.”
In recent weeks, several local and statewide political leaders have pitched their ideas to get more resources to the unhoused. Those have ranged from more housing to mental health service access.
Many of those came in the wake of the murder of Iryna Zarutska. Police arrested Decarlos Brown Jr., an unhoused man whose family says needed treatment for schizophrenia. They said they could not get him access to that care.
The neighbor says anything would be an improvement from where the situation is now, but her hope is that violence can be addressed sooner than later.
“I try to mind my business, keep moving and you know, don’t do nothing, like it’s another ordinary day,” the neighbor said. “That’s sad that we have to feel like killing is senseless, but it’s another ordinary day.”
The investigation is ongoing. Check back with wsoctv.com for updates.
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