Shootings leave 2 dead in Philly; homicide total rises to 503 so far this year
It's another homicide in a year that has already seen a record number of killings in the city.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Two men are dead after separate shootings in Philadelphia on Saturday, pushing the yearly homicide total to 503, surpassing the record of 500 set in 1990.
The first shooting happened just before 3 p.m. at 10th and Brown streets in North Philadelphia.
Police say that's where a 51-year-old man was shot in the left shoulder.
He was rushed to Jefferson Hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.
Meanwhile, a 33-year-old man was killed after he was shot more than a dozen times in the Olney section of Philadelphia.
The shooting happened around 7:10 p.m. on the 500 block of West Duncannon Avenue.
Police say the victim was hit 18 times. He was taken to the hospital but was pronounced dead a short time later.
The names of the victims have not been released.
No arrests have been made.
Anyone with any information is asked to call police at 215-686-TIPS.
City leaders spoke about the gun violence during a press conference earlier this week.
"It's terrible to every morning to get up and have to go look at the numbers and then look at the news and see the stories. It's just crazy. It's just crazy and this needs to stop," said Mayor Jim Kenney.
Kenney said that reducing the violence is his administration's top priority.
He also called on lawmakers in Harrisburg to allow the city to pass more restrictive gun laws to keep weapons off the streets.
"There are people making money selling these guns, making these guns, and the legislature, not the people behind me, don't care. They don't care how many people get killed. It's ridiculous. And cities like Boston and New York that are not dealing with this problem the way we're dealing with it, there are strict gun laws...we need to have some semblance of that. I'm not talking about people hunting deer," said Kenney.
