CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was a violent end to Memorial Day weekend in Charlotte.
Six people were shot in five separate shootings, many of them involving teens.
With youth crime already on the rise, City Councilman Tariq Bokhari, who represents southern Charlotte, said city leaders are focused on prevention ahead of the summer.
"Summer's always the time we're concerned most about because lack of school and them not being occupied there," Bakhari said. "It's just a recipe for a boil over. Violent youth crime is just out of control.”
In just the first quarter of this year, CMPD said young people were connected to more than 20 shootings and 220 auto thefts in Charlotte.
Bokhari said it will take state and local efforts to create change.
“How we are approaching our magistrate process and that broader criminal justice system to things like Raise the Age ... where if they were 18 or younger before that law, they would be somewhere else, not back on the streets," Bokhari explained.
Organizations like Heal Charlotte have been working to provide wrap-around services like housing and food that help break the cycle of poverty and reduce crime.
"We're hoping to create a big dent in the number of homelessness right now, but we are a small piece," founder Greg Jackson said. "We are not the answer."
In April, Heal Charlotte opened a housing center at a former hotel in the Sugar Creek corridor. Already, they have a waitlist of more than 800 people, he said.
"So, we need a lot of people to start thinking about how do we do a reverse of gentrification that allows people to stay in the area that's vibrant and is attached to economic mobility," Jackson said. "Which, essentially, gets everyone to some upward mobility, right?”
The city is also working to address systemic challenges and support police in its upcoming budget. Those discussions are expected to wrap up early June.
Contact Kayland Hagwood at khagwood@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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