Posted on 11/22/2005 11:11:20 PM PST by BurbankKarl
A motorist driving his minivan along Silver Avenue in San Francisco was shot to death Tuesday afternoon -- the city's 88th killing of the year, tying the 2004 total.
Last year, when the number of homicides surged, Mayor Gavin Newsom said on a radio call-in show that if the rate of killings continued people should start a campaign to recall him. He said that he himself might even sign the petition. His staff called the comment "tongue in cheek.''
But on Tuesday he was called on his words. Newsom responded that he had been talking about curbing the city's gang violence, which police say has significantly gone down this year. Authorities blame some of 2005's numbers on everyday troubles beyond their control -- domestic violence, infanticide and mental illness.
"The reality is, we have had crimes this year that follow no traditional patterns,'' Newsom said. "The efforts that we've maintained around gang-related homicides, particularly in the African American community, have paid dividends this year. There's been substantial reductions, but again they're still unacceptably high and I'll continue to fight to do more and to do better.''
On Tuesday, at about 12:30 p.m., his street was the scene of the city's 88th killing. A motorist, whose identity was not released, was shot to death while driving his minivan on Silver. His passenger was also shot and taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, said San Francisco police spokeswoman Maria Oropeza. The suspects, three men in their late teens or early 20s, ditched their van in McLaren Park and fled on foot, Oropeza said. They were still at large as of Tuesday night.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Read about 7 times and still don't understand. Was this a carjacking and the perps ditched the victims van OR were the suspects driving a van and they ditched it after the shooting.
Bad writing either way...
Right up there with Detroit, Baltimore and DC....cities governed by liberals but owned by drug dealers and murderers....pattern here?
Quagmire!
Someone should make a commercial with that recall quoted and play it all day on radio and TV. But is there and non-liberal money out there?
Of course, after a while, even liberals get tired of getting shot at.
"The reality is, we have had crimes this year that follow no traditional patterns,'' Newsom said. "The efforts that we've maintained around gang-related homicides, particularly in the African American community, have paid dividends this year. There's been substantial reductions, but again they're still unacceptably high and I'll continue to fight to do more and to do better.''
Did Newsom just say it was a African American problem? unbelievable!
What tongue in cheek means in San Francisco-speak is much different than most readers would comprehend it to be...
Drive-by shootings are the result of gangs protecting their area of operations.
Along with bulletproof body armor
----Especially covering your backside
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