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Salinas murder rate on upswingAnother person shot Tuesday night By JULIA REYNOLDS and DANIEL LOPEZ
Herald Staff Writers Article Last Updated: 04/02/2008 09:09:47 AM PDT
After only three months, the number of slayings in Salinas this year now equals annual homicide counts reached in 2005 and 2006, and most of the killings are taking place in areas not known for high crime rates.
The Monday night shooting of Manuel Estrada, 23, on West Laurel Drive — the second killing of the day — brought the year's homicide total to seven, indicating the city may again surpass the single-digit murder counts it saw in only two of the past 12 years.
Last year, after a rare two-year lull, the murder count once again rose to double digits when 15 homicides were reported in Salinas.
This year, in addition to the slayings, at least 16 people have been injured by gunfire in what police describe as attempted murders.
Around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, another such shooting was reported on Central Avenue, a block and a half from where a 17-year-old boy was killed in March. Witnesses told police two or three people in a dark-colored, four-door sedan with tinted windows were seen speeding away toward downtown Salinas. Officers at the scene said one person was shot and the injuries did not appear life-threatening.
Two of 2008's shooting victims who survived were shot in the afternoon on a busy street, and police noted the brazenness of Monday's attacks, one of which took place at noon on a busy thoroughfare lined with homes and businesses.
But the killings in 2008 also stand out because they are spread throughout the city.
Only two of the seven slayings this year took place in East Salinas, a district many residents see as the highest-crime and most gang-ridden part of the city. Last year, two-thirds of homicides took place on the east side of town.
Police are unclear if a recent, intensified focus by the city on East Salinas is connected with the shift, or if it's a simple anomaly.
Law enforcement and community groups have recently stepped up their presence in a two-square mile area in East Salinas dubbed "Capstone" that's said to be the site of 74 percent of youth crime.
Salinas police Cmdr. Kelly McMillin said that while two slayings took place early this year in that area, he's convinced that since police zoned in on Capstone the crime rate there has gone down.
Still, he stopped short of saying that greater police presence in East Salinas has pushed gang crime elsewhere. Instead, he said, mobility is simply the nature of gang activity today.
"Back in the '80s, you had groups of red and groups of blue standing on corners intimidating people," he said. But later gang injunctions and police crackdowns pushed youths off the corners. "They still define a geographic area as their own, but the fact of the matter is they're a mobile group."
Regardless of location, police have reported gang connections in most of this year's homicides. Six involved firearms and six of the victims were young Latino males between 17 and 27 years old.
The only arrest so far has been that of Edward Gardner, charged in the stabbing death of 46-year-old postal worker Jean Franklin.
"Communities that have high arrest rates, they have a connection between the suspect and the victim. That gives you a high solve rate," McMillin said. "In gang jurisdictions, you have solve rates like ours."
On Tuesday, frustrated detectives continued to investigate the deaths of two young men shot less than 12 hours apart the day before. Police Sgt. Dave Shaw said investigators have turned up no apparent link to the two incidents and, as in past slaying, officers are hoping witnesses will speak up.
About 10:15 p.m. Monday, police found Estrada dead in the driver's seat of Buick Regal on West Laurel Drive near Highway 101. He had several gunshot wounds, Shaw said.
Police have released few details about the shooting, but said Estrada was apparently driving east on Laurel when he was shot.
Shaw said that based on the nature of the shooting, police are investigating the incident as possible gang action.
Just after noon Monday, 26-year-old Mario Monsivais was also shot and killed near the intersection of West Market and Vale streets.
Witnesses reported seeing two Latino men in dark clothing approach Monsivais. The assailants opened fire and fled, possibly in a red 1980s Lincoln sedan.
Shaw said detectives are still trying to establish a motive for the slaying of Monsivais.
"We have talked to some family members," he said.
McMillin said that while there were gang connections to the victims in the killings Monday, the crimes were "not necessarily gang-motivated."
Although extra police patrols and overtime officers were added following two days of shootings in early March, that visible presence has since been reduced, he said. Now, after Monday's two killings, extra patrols are in force again.
Still, with gunfire breaking out in locations all over the city, McMillin said it's impossible for officers to be everywhere they're needed.
"It's your best guess where to be," he said. "We work with intelligence, we know where certain gang members live. But with the resources the police department has, we still can't adequately cover this city."
On Manuel Estrada's MySpace page, friends of the young man posted messages expressing their condolences.
According to the Web postings, Estrada left a young daughter behind.
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