The awful record for the most killings since at least 1987 has been set in Harrisburg, where the 23 homicides so far this year are equal to the figure from two years ago.
Additionally, 2024 is still eleven days away.
According to the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the increase in Harrisburg homicides coincides with declines in other localities and a decline in the country’s murder rate.
With 16 of the 23 killings solved or cleared thus far, Harrisburg investigators have a 70% 2024 clearance rate. Even though the number of killings has nearly doubled since then, that is still better than the national average and higher than the 62% solved by the end of 2023. In 2023, there were 14 homicides in Harrisburg.
With 23 homicides in 2024, Harrisburg had by far the highest number of any city in central Pennsylvania. According to respective police agencies, York has had five homicides this year while Lancaster has had two. The only city in these departments to experience a rise in homicides this year was Harrisburg.
According to Police Lt. Kyle Gautsch, he was unable to identify a specific cause for the increase in homicides this year.
He compared it to an ebb and flow rollercoaster. Our objective is to have none, but that isn’t feasible. Still, it’s higher than we’d like to see and higher than we’re used to.
The ages of those slain in Harrisburg were 13 to 66. Three females were also killed, including two teenagers, Tyemeshia Miller, 19, who was pregnant at the time, and Na Ryah Wright, 13, who made up the majority. Both of them perished in gunshots in which they were not thought to be the intended victims. Their cases are still open.
As has often been the case in Harrisburg and throughout the country, the majority of the victims were killed in shootings. This year, one victim was stabbed, while two others were beaten or strangled. The majority of victims in cases that were solved were murdered by a familiar acquaintance. Prosecutors claimed that one murder, the stabbing death of a 66-year-old man in his North Sixth Street residence on December 4, was a random act.
Compared to zero double homicides in 2023, Harrisburg saw two in 2024—a double homicide occurs when two victims are slain in the same incident. Miller was shot on May 13; as her unborn son was also slain, this was the first double homicide. Two guys were slain in a firefight on Allison Hill less than ten days later.
Each year, homicides in Harrisburg are caused by gang fights, however some are more common than others. According to Gautsch, it was the case in roughly five homicides in 2024. Sometimes innocent bystanders are killed instead of the intended target, even though the shooters are aiming for their rivals, also referred to as the opposition or opps.
Gautsch remarked, “Unfortunately, anyone can become a victim.”
Following District Attorney Fran Chardo’s decision that the deaths were lawful due to self-defense, four homicides were closed without charges. This is comparable to one case from 2023 that was justified or exceptionally cleared.
According to Chardo, two of the murders this year were police shootings: one included an armed guy who was shooting at cops in downtown Harrisburg, and the other involved a wanted homicide suspect on Cameron Street who opened fire on officers attempting to apprehend him. The use of force in the Cameron Street case is currently being investigated by the district attorney’s office.
In Harrisburg, no one was killed by police in 2023.
According to Gautsch, the 2024 homicide rate is representative of the small proportion of violent individuals that Harrisburg police deal with and occasionally have to use force against.
He claimed that there are those out there who do not understand the worth of human life. You are dealing with those who believe they have nothing to lose and will stop at nothing to escape.
Over the previous ten years, the city has seen roughly 18 homicides annually on average. In 2022, there were 23 killings in the city, while in 2023, there were 14. 22 persons were killed in 1995, the only other time in recent decades that the city came close to this high number of homicides. Only homicide records from 1987 were available to PennLive.
Everyone who died in Harrisburg in 2024 is listed below:
In the 400 block of Crescent Street, Daniel Maldonado, 33, was shot and died on January 27. Anthony Williams was accused of killing Maldonado.
-On February 10 in the 1800 block of Zarker Street, 17-year-old Torray Eden was unintentionally shot by a friend who was playing with a gun. As a minor, Eden’s friend was accused of involuntary manslaughter.
After relocating to the city to live with his mother from East Pennsboro, Torray Eden enrolled in Harrisburg High School. On Friday, February 9, 2024, he was shot and killed at the age of 16. (Image provided by Shawn Eden.)Eden Shawn
-On February 22, after leaving the Political Club located in the 1500 block of Vernon Street, 38-year-old Willie Ford was shot and killed. Tyron Stewart was accused of killing him.
-Tyrone McLemore, 33, was shot on August 4, 2012, in the 400 block of South 14th Street and died on March 21. When McLemore was shot, he refused to cooperate with the authorities. He has an unresolved case.
At Thompson and Evergreen Street on April 17, Dewayne Brown, 43, was shot and murdered. According to the police, Marcus Stultz and Erick Boone pursued Brown to the crossroads, where they shot him before fleeing.
-On the afternoon of May 3, Christian Watt, 27, was shot and killed inside Antonio Grocery at Sixth and Woodbine Street. Jerome Coleman was charged with his murder by police based on a blood trail found at the scene.
-On May 13, Tyemeshia Miller, 19, and her pregnant kid were massacred as Miller protected a toddler from gunshots on a porch close to Fourth and Woodbine Street. The case is still open.
Tyemeshia Miller, 19, and her unborn child were shot and died on May 13 near the 2100 Block of North 4th Street. Harrisburg police are looking into the incident.Miller, Tyemeshia
-On May 21, a flurry of gunfire between two opposing groups on the first block of South 15th Street claimed the life of 27-year-old Dominic Jackson. Jackson was slain in self-defense, according to Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo, and the case was dismissed without any charges.
-The gunfire that claimed Dominic Jackson’s life also claimed the life of 21-year-old Zuuhnteen Jackson. According to Zauhnteen’s family, he was shot down after going to South 15th Street unarmed and ready for a fistfight. His murder was attributed to Kameron Hymes.
According to Chardo, on June 9, Kendrell Hall, 22, was murdered by the cops who returned fire on him while he was fleeing from Harrisburg and Capitol police and brandishing an altered weapon at them. He concluded that the officer’s use of force was appropriate and dismissed the case without filing any charges.
Paul Kattouf, 52, was a part of a road rage incident on Interstate 81 on June 23. According to police, the situation escalated when he pulled over and confronted the other driver on State Street in downtown Harrisburg. According to Chardo, after Kattouf discharged pepper spray through his open window, the other driver shot and killed him. The case was dismissed without charges after it was determined that the shooting was carried out in self-defense.
-Just after leaving a performance at the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center (HMAC) on July 5, 20-year-old Azar Hughes was shot and died. In Harrisburg, he was the third son to be shot and died. His case is still open.
Azar Hughes, 20, was quite proud of the fact that he and his girlfriend, Anje Lee, went to prom earlier this year. On Friday, July 5, 2024, Hughes was shot and died in Harrisburg. (Image provided by Anje Lee.)Thanks to Anje Lee
-On July 8, 39-year-old Errol Staples was discovered dead in the center of the Linden Street 100 block. According to an autopsy, he had a catastrophic brain damage and strangled to death. His case is still open.
-On August 11, 13-year-old Na Ryah Wright was at a party at a rented home close to 19th and Derry Street with a bunch of other teenagers. She was not thought to have been the original target and was murdered while fleeing from gunshots. Her case is still open.
-On August 12, Antoine Byers Jr., 17, was shot and killed after he pulled a revolver on a female at 18th and Regina Street with whom he was having an argument. According to Chardo, his death was declared self-defense since he was threatening to hurt someone else. The guy suspected of killing Byers, Rashad Neal, was charged with charges involving weapons.
On August 29, while visiting Kyle and Chanise Burton’s residence on the 100 block of Pine Street, 26-year-old Allie McFadden was assaulted and strangled, according to the police. The Burtons were accused of killing her.
-According to authorities, Thomas Davenport, 38, was shot and died on September 13 on the first block of North 14th Street by his son Tymarion Davenport. Tymarion Davenport is accused of killing his father.
-On October 21, Ridge Moore Jr., 16, was shot and died outside his house in the Hunter Street neighborhood, located in the 1400 block. His case is still open.
-On November 2, Darius Stukes, 34, was shot five times while traveling from York to Harrisburg in the vicinity of Hunter and Nectarine Street. Afterwards, Lateef Phoenix was accused of first-degree murder.
-On December 4, Michael Thompson, 66, was killed by stabbings with gardening tools at his residence in the 2700 block of North Sixth Street. According to the prosecution, the attack was random. At the scene, Tajyeiah Greer was taken into custody and accused of murder.
-On December 8, during a dispute in the 300 block of Nectarine Street, 25-year-old Jhonny Torres was shot and killed. A murder charge was brought against Santiago Gutierrez.
-On December 10, 29-year-old Santiago Gutierrez was shot and murdered on Cameron Street while attempting to elude capture for the murder of Torres, according to Chardo. According to authorities, officers opened fire after Gutierrez fired at them, leaving his pickup covered with bullets. At the scene, Gutierrez was declared deceased. In order to ascertain if the officer’s use of force was warranted, Chardo is currently examining the matter.
Crime and court news
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