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'We try as much as possible to curtail this,' Richmond faith leader says after 1 dead, 4 hurt in 3 shootings

Andrews: 'When our people know better they can do better. And when they see hope they'll follow the trail.'
Richmond shootings
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RICHMOND, Va. -- One person is dead after a shooting Sunday morning that follows two double shootings that injured four people over 36 hours in Richmond. The violence came on the heels of promising gun violence statistics shared by the city's police chief Thursday.

"During the same time last year we are down 12 percent in those all persons shot so we are very pleased with that," Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards said.

The most recent shooting happened when a man was killed early Sunday morning on Richmond's Southside was found in the road, according to investigators.

Officers were called to the 1000 block of German School Road for a report of a person down at 6:50 a.m. Sunday

"Officers arrived and found an adult male, down, in the roadway," police said. "He had suffered an apparent gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene."

Richmond shootings
Brookland Park Boulevard shooting

The next shooting happened around 12:15 p.m. Saturday in the 1200 block of Brookland Park Boulevard on the city's Northside.

The two men, who were shot in the chest, have life-threatening injuries, Crime Insider sources told Jon Burkett.

Those same sources also shared details about a Southside shooting at the Woodland Crossing apartments off Walmsley Boulevard around 10 p.m. Friday.

Two men there were also shot, but their wounds are not life-threatening, according to police.

Sources told Burkett that the shootings Friday and Saturday were unrelated.

 Woodland Crossing
Woodland Crossing shooting

Faith leaders said the chief's message was not one to crank up the violence -- even though that's what it's been the past 16 hours.

Charles Willis with the United Communities Against Crime said Richmond "has been doing a great job."

"The community mediators, Trauma Response Healing Network, United Communities Against Crime, we've all been collectively working together to decrease crime," Willis said. "But still there's somebody that wanted violence instead of mediating and resolving it without conflict."

Rev. Gwendolyn Andrews and Charles Willis
Rev. Gwendolyn Andrews and Charles Willis

"You do better when you know better, right," Rev. Gwendolyn Andrews said. "We're teaching conflict resolution, we have groups on anger management. But again we try as much as possible to curtail this, but we are talking about a big city."

While four people shot in less than a day alarmed faith and community leaders, they believe the work they're doing along with officers in Operation Safe Summer has saved lives since April.

"The Richmond Police have done an excellent job and I'm not trying to promote RPD," Willis said. "They have done an excellent job in pulling together community resources. And we're the ones out here who want folks that want you to call us. We want to come when it's not situations like this."

"I know when our people know better they can do better," Andrews said. "And when they see hope they'll follow the trail."

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