Downtown shooting was inevitable, business owners warn

Lina Portman3 weeks ago

0 3 minutes read

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – It's been a few days since a chaotic shootout in the city center sent three people – including The 19-year-old suspect, Amazing Brigham – to the hospital and others ran for their lives.

And owners of several Broad Street businesses say they're tired of voicing safety concerns without seeing that nothing is being done about them.

They say they want more than words from local leaders.

They want results, and Saturday's incident could be a wake-up call.

Authorities said at least two people were involved in a shooting at 10th and Broad streets, and at least one of them opened fire on a crowded sidewalk. Nearby police officers shot one of the gunmen and two other people were injured.

Across the area, the shooting sparked panic inside and outside businesses.

DOWNTOWN SHOOTING: TEAM COVERAGE

Ask people who were nearby and they will tell you that what happened will never really go away for them.

Ask business owners and they'll tell you it was meant to be.

That's the sentiment of downtown business owner Adrian Estrada.

“And the rest of the year? Not just in the summer and not just on First Friday,” he said.

Sheriff Richard Roundtree held a news conference Saturday afternoon about the shooting.and he was confronted by Estrada.

“I haven't done anything other than call 911 in the last two months – and I've had over an hour of response to every 911 call I've made,” a- he declared to Roundtree. “I received a group of more than 100 people in front of my establishment after midnight.”

Roundtree finally interrupted him by saying, “Are you making a statement, sir, or do you have a question?”

Estrada replied: “Well, yes, sir. What are you going to do on weekends in the future? Not just summer; I'm talking about the whole year. This problem doesn't only exist in summer. This lasted all year. And I talked about it. And I've been very, very, extremely public about it. And nothing was done until someone was shot with an assault rifle. This is a huge concern.

This is a shared concern; Estrada was joined by several other business owners.

“Well, I disagree with you on that. We are present in the city center. Downtown is one of the safest places in Richmond County,” Roundtree said.

This was followed by an exchange in which Roundtree and Estrada disagreed.

Several downtown bar owners say they no longer want to talk about it.

They want results.

And they want to feel safe on the streets of downtown Augusta at all hours.

One business owner told News 12, “Every weekend we hold our breath and hope nothing bad happens. »

Roundtree and his agency are going to get some help, it seems. Mayor Garnett Johnson contacted Governor Brian Kemp to request reinforcements from the state.

The state agreed to send officers from the Georgia State Patrol and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to help bolster local law enforcement.

It is unclear when this will begin.

Some business owners aren't happy, but will customers come back?

Juan Jose Rodriguez de la Rosa, owner of Pineapple Ink Tavern, said, “Believe it or not, business has been great. »

On Sunday, birds were chirping, people were riding bikes, families were taking walks, and restaurants were packed with after-church crowds.

But that wasn't normal for Zalundra Henry, who witnessed the shooting,

“It seems like it’s another day that’s happened and everyone’s used to it, and we’re all coming back to the same thing,” Henry said.

“I still feel a little shaken,” Henry said. “Actually, it was crazy that night.”

Pieces of Saturday still lingered in his mind

Seeing glass still on the sidewalk made her step back.

His mother, Garian Henry, called on elected officials to do something.

“Move forward and do something about it.” It's not just one person's job. It affects everyone. They need to start imposing a curfew. They need ways to deter young people from violence,” she said.