Two injured in College Hill Courts shooting
Two men were injured in a College Hill Courts shooting just after 6 p.m. Wednesday night.
One victim suffered a single gunshot wound to the lower abdomen, while the second received a single gunshot wound to the thigh, Chattanooga Police Department Capt. Jerri Sutton said. Their wounds were not life-threatening, and they were in stable condition at the time they were taken to the hospital.
The victims’ identities have not been released yet, but one man is in his 20s and the other is in his 30s.
Both victims were located on the same porch
of a home in the 1200 block of Cypress Street Court, an area not far from a playground and recreation center which children and adults frequent.
Sutton said police did not have information regarding possible suspects or a motive, but they were speaking with witnesses and reviewing surveillance camera footage to locate a suspect or suspects.
This was the first shooting in the area for at least two to three months, Sutton said, though several neighbors said they often hear gunshots. A victim isn’t as common, one neighbor said. They did not want to be identified for fear of retaliation.
“Things over here have been relatively calm,” Sutton said, citing the holiday season and increased police presence over the summer and into the fall as reasons for a decrease in shootings.
“We’ve done a lot to keep the peace in this area and ensure the safety of the kids and the residents that live here,” she said
The local community center has also done a lot to assist in maintaining the peace, Sutton said. The center offers programs for children to attend, allowing parents to “catch a break in terms of parenting and helping kids with homework.”
“Overall, the atmosphere in this area has been pretty good,” she said.
But neighbors who were standing by in the 30-degree cold night as investigators did their work said they were pretty shaken up. One woman said she heard several gunshots and got away from her windows as soon as she heard them and stayed inside for several minutes.
“I mind my own business,” she said, adding that she only knows her two neighbors who live next to her.
Another man pointed in shocked curiosity at a bullet that was lodged inside a brick next to a window. The window had broken, and a shard was lying on the grass below. Police said that bullet was not related to Wednesday night’s shooting.
“You know they’re scared,” the man said of the people who lived inside the apartment, an emotion many in the neighborhood shared Wednesday night.
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