New Orleans’ homicide tally climbs to highest in 26 years

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Nine shootings in less than 24 hours across New Orleans left three people dead and six others injured. Shootings rocked neighborhoods from Mid City to the Seventh Ward, the French Quarter, the East, and the West Bank.

So far this year, at least 277 killings have been reported across New Orleans, the most since 1996.

The violence began Wednesday (Dec. 28) at around 11:30 a.m., when the New Orleans Police Department responded to a call of a shooting at a residence in the 3100 block of Pittari Drive in Algiers. Upon arrival, they discovered a male victim suffering from at least one gunshot wound.

Police say the West Bank homeowner found an armed intruder inside his home and opened fire, striking the man.

The man was taken to a local hospital, where he later died.

MORE: Homeowner fatally shoots alleged home invader in Algiers, NOPD says

At around 1:47 p.m., NOPD responded to a call of a shooting in the heart of the French Quarter, at the intersection of Toulouse and Bourbon Streets. Police say a man was shot multiple times after an altercation and taken to a hospital where he died.

A 16-year-old suspect was apprehended a few blocks away on Rampart Street and booked with second-degree murder.

MORE: Man dies after being shot Wednesday afternoon in French Quarter

Some tourists were unnerved by the broad daylight murder, others were unfazed.

“You just got to be smart,” Vincent Underwood says. “Take care of yourself. It doesn’t deter us from coming down here.”

With the holiday weekend approaching and swarms of visitors expected, Interim NOPD Superintendent Michelle Woodfork directed 250 NOPD officers to patrol the French Quarter and surrounding areas along with an additional 25 Louisiana State Police troopers.

About four hours later, around 4:38 p.m., police responded to a shooting in the 100 block of North Galvez Street, right across from University Medical Center. Police say a man was shot after being involved in a verbal altercation. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

An hour after that, police responded to another shooting in the 2000 block of North Rocheblave Street. Police say around 5:25 p.m., a gunman opened fire on a vehicle, striking a 20-year-old woman. She was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. Police say a second unknown victim did not receive medical attention and left before speaking with authorities.

Then at 8:11 p.m., police say two people were shot in the 4800 block of Viola Street in the Plum Orchard neighborhood of New Orleans East. According to the NOPD, a 29-year-old man was sitting inside a vehicle when he was approached by another vehicle. The occupant(s) of the second vehicle began shooting.

The 29-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene and a 16-year-old male was taken to the hospital for treatment.

At 8:32 p.m., police responded to a drive-by shooting in the 2800 block of Josephine Street. Police say two men were outside when the passengers of a vehicle began shooting. A 47-year-old man was wounded and taken to the hospital. A second victim, a 37-year-old man, realized he was shot multiple times and was taken to the hospital in a private vehicle.

The violence continued overnight into the early Thursday morning hours.

The NOPD says a teenage juvenile female was grazed in a shooting just after 2 a.m. in the 3600 block of 4th Street.

And about 30 minutes later, police say a man was wounded in a drive-by shooting at the intersection of Paris Avenue and Gentilly Boulevard.

Another 30 minutes after that, the NOPD says a man was driving on I-10 when his car window shattered near Louisa Street. The victim was taken to the hospital after realizing he had been shot.

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