Cousin of DC Councilmember Trayon White injured in Southeast DC triple shooting

WASHINGTON - Three people were shot in Southeast D.C. Tuesday night and one of the victims who was injured is a relative of a D.C. council member.

Councilmember Trayon White, D-Ward 8, said his 17-year-old cousin was shot along with two other women in what he described as a drive-by shooting. D.C. police said the shooting happened in the 800 block of Chesapeake Street at around 10:15 p.m.

White said his cousin is in stable condition at the hospital as well as the other two victims. A police report said five cars were hit by gunfire during the shooting.

There have been no arrests made in this case.

On Wednesday, D.C. police along with many District agencies were at the scene of the shooting to talk to the community. A K-9 with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was also brought in to the area.

With this latest gun violence hitting so close to home for Councilmember White, we asked him what he thinks is the solution to stop the violence. He believes the city council should address it with funding.

"It is not the first time and probably won't be the last time. I am just feeling what the people in the community feel every day, and that is why we need to stop saying that crime is down because people in the community that is feeling it don't feel like crime is down," White said. "Open the [recreation centers] up longer throughout the summer, get more resources as far as mental health, get some allocated jobs, deal with substance abuse [issues]. We have a comprehensive strategy on how we want to deal with it. We just need to get everyone on board."

On Tuesday, Mayor Muriel Bowser and Police Chief Peter Newsham announced that the police department will shift 25 percent of its force to some of the troubled areas in Wards 5, 7 and 8.

However, White said that he does not think putting more police on the street will help. While it won't happen overnight, he believes the strategies he has mentioned will work.