Shooting injures 5 in Jackson Heights

As police continue to search for the suspect in the shooting that injured five people along Roosevelt Avenue, community leaders are demanding that additional security measures be implemented immediately that could prevent future incidents.
Early Saturday afternoon, May 24, a gunman opened fire near 80th Street and Roosevelt Avenue spraying bullets that sent five people to Elmhurst Hospital Center. All five victims are expected to recover.
“For there to be an atmosphere where criminals are so bold and brazen that they believe that in broad daylight they can turn our community into the OK Corral, it’s just incredible and demands immediate and aggressive action,” said City Councilmember Hiram Monserrate, who lives three blocks from where the shooting took place.
Monserrate stood with a number of community leaders and residents the day after the shooting calling for additional New York Police Department (NYPD) officers and crime fighting resources in the area.
“Police resources are supposed to be allocated on a need basis,” Monserrate said. “No one in this city can argue with me that Roosevelt Avenue is not a high-needs district that needs additional police resources.”
In addition, community leaders want security cameras installed on the streets in the hopes of deterring future incidents.
“A human life is worth much more than a camera,” said Queens Assemblymember Jose Peralta, responding to a question about the additional costs of the cameras. “The more cameras that we have, the better chance we have with fighting crime.”
Reports indicate that the shooting could be gang-related - a problem that has plagued this area for many years. The NYPD is still investigating the shooting and searching for the suspect.
Meanwhile, Peralta said this is not the first time they have asked for additional NYPD resources in an area that has a history of prostitution, drugs and violence.
In the late 1990s, the Roosevelt Avenue Taskforce, which was made up of undercover police officers and detectives, was largely responsible for ridding Roosevelt Avenue of crimes. However, when the federal government pulled its funding for the program, the city and state could not afford to continue it, according to Peralta.
“We need to continue to put pressure on government,” Peralta said.
In addition, community leaders will host an emergency town hall meeting on Thursday, May 29 in order to discuss what immediate steps the community can take to improve safety in the area.
The meeting will take place the Jewish Center of Jackson Heights located at 37-06 77th Street from 7 to 9 p.m.