As religious leaders prayed in front of D.C. Police鈥檚 Seventh District station along Alabama Avenue in Southeast on Tuesday night, Chief Pamela Smith watched closely.
She closed her eyes, lowered her head and at times clapped as community members prayed for safety in their neighborhood, for an end to gun violence and for healing for the family of 3-year-old Ty鈥檃h Settles, who was killed nearby Friday night.
Then, when it was her to turn to speak, she reflected on what she called a “troubling weekend.” Smith said she has nieces and nephews, and Settles鈥� death hit her particularly hard.
Police said Settles was in a car and struck by a stray bullet last week.
To help the community cope, Smith convened her Faith Advisory Council for a prayer walk through the neighborhood. She led a group in song while walking down Irving Street and then around the corner, where Settles鈥� family had a few private minutes with D.C.鈥檚 top law enforcement official.
While violent crime is down in D.C. compared to the first five months of 2023, police remain concerned about what could happen as the warm weather arrives. Smith said Tuesday that D.C. summers 鈥渃an be rough.鈥� Friday鈥檚 shooting, which left a toddler in a car caught in crossfire, was a reminder of that.
鈥淲e will deploy as many resources as we can, but that鈥檚 not the final answer,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淭he answer is that we鈥檝e all got to come together as a community to have these young people and adults put these guns down.鈥�
Police are still searching for whoever may have been involved in the Southeast shooting, and Smith said the city is offering a $50,000 reward for anyone who can provide information related to the deadly incident.
鈥淚t’s heartbreaking for the District of Columbia to lose someone who’s so young and did not have a chance to even have a start in life,鈥� Smith said.
Many religious leaders and community members shared a similar sentiment.
Emma P. Ward, who said she鈥檚 a reading specialist in the city, has been thinking about how Settles鈥� family will be navigating life missing the traditional milestones of a child.
鈥淚 won’t have the opportunity to teach that 3-year-old how to read,鈥� Ward said. 鈥淭hat just breaks my heart.鈥�
Smith, meanwhile, is hoping to rally around Settles鈥� family and use the shooting to implement change.
鈥淲hen we see young people doing things that they should not be doing, we’ve got to take our community back and intervene when they’re doing things that are not right,鈥� Smith said.
Phyllis, a Ward 8 resident, described the shooting as senseless and heartbreaking.
鈥淭his is a wake up call to people to realize that life is precious, and you can’t give it back,鈥� she said.
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