Police: 'No rhyme or reason' for spate of shootings in Milford's Brightway neighborhood

Down the street from an elementary school in Milford, a recent spate of gunfire has residents wondering whether the time has come to find a new place to live.

“I’ve been looking for a place, anything,” said one mother who asked not to be identified out of fear for her child’s safety. “I’ve lived here for five years and it has gotten worse. Now you just want to stay to yourself. I don’t want to be a part of anything they’ve got going on.”

Gunfire has rung out at the Brightway Commons apartment complex three times in less than a month, with one shooting sending two people to the hospital.

On April 13, police responded to the small community off Church Street around 11:30 p.m. for a report of two gunshot wound victims. Both were taken to Milford Memorial Hospital and one was later transported to Christiana Hospital. Police said one victim was shot in the stomach area and the other victim was shot in the leg. No suspects have been announced and the shooting remains under investigation.

On May 3, officers again returned to Brightway for a report of shots fired. This time there were no victims, but property was damaged. Five days later, Bridgeville resident Ronnier Elmore, 25, was arrested in connection with the shooting, as well as another one on May 5 in a different part of town.

Hours after Elmore was arrested, gunshots again were heard in Brightway. That investigation remains open and no suspects have been identified. No injuries or property damage were reported, police said.

“I think the last few could be possibly linked,” said Milford Police Department Detective Cpl. Timothy Maloney. He said he does not suspect the April shooting is connected to the two in May.

“It all depends on further investigative leads we need to follow up on,” he said.

Maloney said his department is stepping up surveillance efforts in an area they say is an on-and-off hotspot for violent crime, and the department is working with property managers to update lighting and surveillance cameras.

“This is a constant ongoing thing out there,” he said. “And most of the people out there, they know what’s going on.”

Over the last 12 months, police have been called to Brightway more than 200 times for everything from disorderly conduct and domestic disputes to thefts and assaults. The three recent shootings are the only ones in Brightway that have been reported over the last year.

Maloney said it’s difficult to say whether the recent shootings constitute a crime trend in the area, but incidents have been increasing.

“I would say you could consider it a hotspot for crime,” he said. “There’s no real rhyme or reason for the amount of shootings we have. But it’s been picking up.’

He said most shootings occur well after school is dismissed at nearby Benjamin Banneker Elementary School, which is staffed with school resource officers and other security measures.

"We have not had any recent incidents within the area surrounding Banneker during the school day where we have been concerned, but we are aware of the recent incidents and have security measures in place for the school day and evening events," Milford School District Superintendent Kevin Dickerson said. "Our concern is also for our families who may be impacted and ensuring that their students have the support they need.”

Brightway has seen its fair share of violent crime in recent years. In May 2016, a 21-year-old man was critically injured after he was shot in a parking lot at the complex. In August 2015, a man fired multiple rounds into one of the lower-level apartment buildings, but no injuries were reported.

So far this year, Milford police have received seven reports of shots fired, three of which occurred in Brightway, Maloney said. He said six of those seven reports were confirmed to be gunfire.

In 2017, Milford saw three shootings that resulted in injuries, one of which was fatal and none of which occurred at Brightway, according to police reports.

Last year, police reported 283 shootings statewide that resulted in injuries or deaths. That number does not include shots fired complaints.

One lifelong resident said she remembers when police would regularly patrol the neighborhood and ask anyone outside their homes to show identification. She said she does not see that anymore.

Maloney said police are increasing patrols, but the residents said they haven’t noticed. Or when they do see police in the neighborhood, it’s as if they’re just passing through. Maloney said they are keeping a close eye and residents will notice more officers walking through on weekends.

“Sometimes, the cops even seem scared to come out here,” said one resident, who — like all of the other neighbors who spoke with The News Journal this week — asked not to be identified out of fear.

She said most of the shootings — some of which leave people and property unscathed — are likely at the hands of people who live out of town. She said she suspects the violence is related to drugs, "beefs" and a misguided younger generation, some of whom she said affiliate with what she called the “Milly Gang.”

“Milly” means Milford, she said. Maloney said he could not comment on whether that gang is legitimate.

The recent gunfire is not the first the 28-year-old woman experienced, but she said it is still scary no matter how many times it happens.

The mother of two remembered one evening in recent years that she looked out her window after hearing a loud bang and saw a man lying on the ground, clutching his neck. Blood was everywhere, she said, and the puddle left behind was not washed away for two days.

“It’s been the same for years,” she said. She said every time gunshots ring out, people go running. And when the police arrive, people run away again.

“I’m leaving in two weeks,” she said.

Many of her neighbors said they also are looking for new places to live, out of fear for their family’s safety.

“They need to take that stuff somewhere else,” said the mother who has lived at Brightway for about five years. “Usually I’d let [the kids] go to the park, but now I’m worried about the safety of my child. It doesn’t feel safe anymore.”

Another young mother, who had not heard about the recent shootings, recalled a few years ago when bullets were shot through her apartment. She was uninjured in that incident and continued living in the home because she had nowhere else to go, she said.

The apartment complex, which offers affordable housing rentals, is managed by East Coast Property Management. The company’s vice president, Christina Stanley, said the issue is “being appropriately handled.”

“Right now we’re working with the owners of the property and local authorities,” Stanley said. “We can’t get into any specifics with what we’re doing with the property. We’re just not going to get into that. We value our community and our residents and that’s it.”

Stanley said there are security cameras in the neighborhood, but declined to comment about it being labeled by police as a crime hotspot.

“We do cooperate closely with the police department,” she said.

Anyone with information about the recent shootings is asked to contact the Milford Police Department at (302) 422-8081, Delaware Crime Stoppers at (800) TIP-3333 or go online at MilfordPoliceDE.org/TIPS.

Contact reporter Maddy Lauria at (302) 345-0608, mlauria@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @MaddyinMilford.

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