Esteban Parra

The News Journal

Gun violence in Delaware's largest city has come faster and sooner this year than in previous years.

The 39 shootings, 11 of them fatal, have not escaped the attention of Wilmington residents, some of whom marched to Mayor Mike Purzycki's office on Wednesday with demands he take action.

The marchers, led by the Rev. Derrick "Pastor D" Johnson, were turned away when they reached Purzycki's office. They were told the mayor was not there.

Purzycki later issued a statement saying his administration has been building a strategy to reduce crime, strengthen neighborhoods and increase employment opportunities. The statement also said Wilmington was working with New Castle County, state and federal authorities and had made moves to engage the community.

"We have also partnered with City Council President [Hanifa] Shabazz, Governor [John] Carney and New Castle County Executive [Matt] Meyer to support a community task force violence reduction report that emanates from the work of the National Centers for Disease Control," Purzycki's statement said, referring to the 2015 CDC study that identified risk factors for Wilmington youth to become victims or perpetrators of gun violence.

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The report, released in January, identified ways Wilmington can improve recreation, education, employment and mental health services.

In the meantime, the city's gun violence continues to rise, accounting for 78 percent of all of the state's shootings so far this year. Wilmington's 11 homicides account for 65 percent of all killings.

The number of fatal shootings in 54 days is easily outpacing the previous four years:

Last year, it took until May 19 – 140 days – for 11 people to have been killed by gunfire.

In 2015, it took until April 28 – 118 days – to see that many people killed by gunfire.

Wilmington did not see 11 people fatally shot in 2014 until June 21 – 172 days into that year.

It took until Sept. 13 of 2014 to reach that many homicides by gunfire – 256 days into that year.

After 10 people were shot in Wilmington in the first two weeks of January, Purzycki announced the deployment of county and state police officers to high-crime areas. Their assistance is ongoing, the mayor's office said Wednesday.

About 30 people marched from Rodney Square to Purzycki's office to present six demands to the new mayor; the protesters said he had not responded to their calls.

About five Wilmington police officers blocked the marchers' entrance into the Louis L. Redding City/County Building, saying they could not enter if they were going to actively protest inside the building. Once the marchers put away their signs, they were allowed to enter.

The demonstrators were again blocked by more police officers after exiting the elevators and trying to enter Purzycki's office on the ninth floor. After more than 20 minutes of back-and-forth with police, including Wilmington Chief Bobby Cummings, to allow Johnson and the marchers into the foyer of the mayor's office, Johnson and the group knelt before the closed doors and prayed.

"This is not right," Johnson said after not being allowed in the mayor's office.

Kathleen MacRae, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Delaware, said the city does not have to allow protests inside its facility as long as that is a consistent policy.

"The city does not have an obligation to allow protesters into the building or to gather in any particular area inside the building unless the city has a past practice of allowing groups of protesters with or without signs to assemble inside," MacRae said. "If there is a history of allowing certain groups to enter and assemble inside, then all groups must be allowed to do the same."

Johnson, who said he and other demonstrators would return at a later date, listed several demands he wanted Purzycki to adopt. They are that the mayor:

Meet with an eight-person council of leaders to discuss a strategy to end violence.

Request support from Gov. John Carney for grief, mental health and housing.

Create a violence prevention "hotline" that is confidential and monitored by people selected from the community. The hotline would be used to report pending violence.

Immediately re-institute a gun collection program where weapons can be surrendered safely.

Declare that Wilmington is in the middle of a health crisis and allow the state to ask hospitals to use their psychiatric and drug treatment floors.

Johnson also wants the mayor to reinstate the contract he had with the city under former Mayor Dennis P. Williams. Johnson was hired as a "group gang and violence intervention specialist" to act as a liaison between potential troublemakers and city officials. His $6,000 contract required two-hour group sessions two to three times a week for six months, roughly July through December 2016. Johnson claims he helped prevent shootings and get guns off the street.

Johnson said he didn't care if he wasn't in charge of the program, just that it be reinstated.

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Purzycki was at a prayer service at Bethel AME Church that was led by the Rev. Ty Johnson, brother of Derrick Johnson. The prayer service was an attempt to unify people after local and national acts of anti-Semitism. A bomb threat on Monday at the Siegel Jewish Community Center in Talleyville followed two others in January that prompted an emergency meeting. Over 100 headstones were vandalized at a Philadelphia Jewish cemetery this week.

In his statement, Purzycki also said that in the coming weeks the city will announce a revitalization program to be piloted in a particular neighborhood before expanding it.

The program is meant to reduce crime and blight.

"Above all, I will continue to reach out to individuals and groups to explain our approach to governing and to seek input and support because we are all in this together and we need each other to make this work," the statement said. "I know that the outreach to some folks will be harder to achieve, but that will not deter me or my administration from building partnerships."

Contact Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299, eparra@delawareonline.com or Twitter @eparra3.