A 23 year-old man is dead after he was shot on the 2200 block of North Gratz Street Wednesday, May 30, according to police.
Police said officers were responding to a report of a person with a gun when they found Malik Harvin of North Philadelphia lying inside the entry of a property on the block. Harvin was transported to Temple University Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:17 a.m. of a gunshot wound to the chest.
Police said they have not apprehended a suspect and have not identified a motive. Harvin did have prior offenses, however police said it’s too early in the investigation to determine if these offenses were linked to his death.
Residents in the area expressed concern for the safety of the community after the incident.
“It’s crazy that you can’t just come outside and enjoy yourself,” Carolyn Parks said, as she sat on the stoop of her home just a few houses down from where Harvin was shot. “I feel bad for the kids that are killing kids, everywhere that you go its violence.”
While Parks said she felt bad for the violence in the area, others like Darnell Smith, a resident of the area, said that the community needs a reshaping.
“A whole lot has to be done to reshape the community,” Smith said, as he sat outside a nearby corner store. “People in the community want to point fingers and say that it’s just the drugs and drug dealers, but what really needs to be done is getting rid of the users.”
Although the shooting occurred in an area that houses many Temple students who live off of Main Campus, Temple Police were not involved.
Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charles Leone said that, since the incident happened outside the regular patrol area, did not involve Temple students and was being handled by the Philadelphia Police Department, Temple’s involvement was not necessary. In addition, no TU Alert was issued.
“The law tells us we have to put out an alert when [an incident] is on campus,” Leone said. “We go beyond what the law specifies, but we have to draw the line somewhere.”
Dominique Johnson and Ali Watkins can be reached at news@temple-news.com.
Be the first to comment