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CHARLESTON, SC (WCSC) — The Charleston Police Department is releasing new details about the September 4th shooting on King Street.
Seven people were shot, including the intended target and six others, Lt. Matt Stanley said at a public safety meeting Monday.
During the investigation detectives Stanley determined that the two perpetrators, a 16-year-old and a 20-year-old, were walking along King Street when they observed the intended victim in the area, whom they knew as adults from a previous fight. .
Stanley said the two criminals conspired and waited for their victim at the intersection of King Street and Morris Street. The adult offender then pulled out a handgun and shot the victim approximately 10 times.
The victim was shot multiple times, but when he hit the ground, a gun was pulled from his waistband and a round discharged.
Six other bystanders were also injured. Stanley said they believe they have identified all the criminals in the case. Four people were charged after the shooting incident, two for the actual shooting and two for illegal carrying.
Read more: 5 injured, 2 arrested in Charleston shooting
Cpt. Jason Bruder said this particular incident made them realize they needed a more long-term solution. For a year and a half, the city had a pilot program to put more officers and security measures on King Street on weekends, but now it’s looking to make it permanent, she says.
Parking is restricted on King Street from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m., and traffic diversions begin at 8 p.m. Now, on any given weekend night, Bruder said, there can be 25 to 40 officers in the King Street area. He said they are working with parking garages to get a flat rate to help people get out of the area in a timely manner. Fire marshals look after occupancy loads, and parking enforcement comes in at night to help ticket vehicles on the weekends. He said that they are looking to improve the lighting and camera systems.
“We’re having conversations about what King Street looks like long-term so we can make sure it’s a safe environment and provide a quality experience for people to come to Charleston,” Bruder said.
Bruder said at the meeting that since Sept. 9, 75 arrests have been made on King Street on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. He said he had tracked 2.6 million visitors to King Street since the start of the year.
“All the safety measures they’ve put in place from the city council and the police department have really impacted King Street and made it a much safer environment,” said Roy Neal, owner of El Jefe. “Business owners on King Street, what we want is activity and a safe environment, and that’s what we’ve got now.”
December Zabinske-Smith, who works as a shift leader at Benny Ravello’s Pizza, said she still thinks more safety measures could be put in place.
“It’s not safe for me to work at night, so even what goes on here at night,” said Zabinski-Smith.
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