STOCKTON, Calif. — Stockton has reached a grim milestone of 39 homicides, totaling the same number of homicides for all of 2021.
The latest killing happened at a large apartment complex in the 800 block of East Hammer Lane near Tam O' Shanter Drive in North Stockton. Police received a call shortly after 6:30 a.m. of a 21-year-old man found shot in a car. The car had at least one bullet hole through the driver's side window.
A number of family members were at the scene, some sobbing at the sight of their loved one surrounded by investigators and crime tape.
In separate incident, police also listed a man who was found in the roadway on Porterfield Court from Saturday morning as a homicide. An autopsy revealed the 19-year-old had a bullet inside his body. No one has been arrested.
"We are killing one another and not even thinking about it or not even feeling the grief," said Bishop Rufus Turner, of Stockton's Victory in Praise Church.
He says it's time for the community to "take a pause" and come together to find solutions to the violence in the form of a town hall meeting.
"We need what is classified as a sabbath, which is like a day of rest, a time of rest before we start again," Turner said.
Turner says many people have the mindset that life is not valuable.
"Somehow that has entered into our young people's minds, 'I am not afraid to die,'" he said.
As for solutions, the bishop says we must uncover the root cause of the violence and catch it at a much younger age.
"We wait until it manifests itself and then we want to do something about it," Turner said.
In regard to the potential town hall meeting, Turner says community leaders and other sectors of the city will be part of it, however details are still being worked out.
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