A man is in critical condition after being shot several times in the chest by a suspect allegedly trying to break into his vehicle in Deep Ellum shortly after midnight on Thursday.
Witnesses to the incident, which occurred in a parking lot at Malcolm X Boulevard and Main Street, reported that the shooter appeared undeterred by the car’s owner catching him trying to force his way in.
“It really seemed like [the victim] was trying to scare [the suspect] off, like, what are you doing to my car?” said Stephen Martinez, per Fox 4 KDFW.
“[The suspect] kinda waited there until the victim got close, and pulled a gun on him,” he explained.
After opening fire at the victim, the suspect took off on foot, narrowly missing the Deep Ellum Task Force, who responded within a minute, according to the Dallas Police Department.
“We do not have a description at this time of the suspect. Just asking everyone to be, you know, obviously aware of their surroundings. And if you see anything suspicious, always call 911,” said DPD spokesperson Kristin Lowman, per Fox 4.
An identification may be forthcoming as detectives comb through nearby surveillance footage and continue interviewing witnesses. The suspect’s fingerprints were also found on the victim’s vehicle.
The victim’s identity has not been released, and he is said to be in critical condition at Baylor Scott and White Medical Center.
The shooting occurred in District 2, which Council Member Jesse Moreno represents. It is second to only District 6 in terms of the number of crimes reported there this year as of July 10, according to data from the City’s crime analytics dashboard. There have been 896 vehicles reported stolen, and 864 reported broken into.
District 2 is one of two districts comprising Downtown Dallas, which regularly logs higher crime rates than neighboring Fort Worth’s city center.
While downtown Fort Worth is patrolled by a specialized neighborhood police unit and private security guards, Downtown Dallas bears the brunt of a longstanding police shortage within the Dallas Police Department.
DPD fields only around 3,000 officers, which is far less than the 4,000 recommended in a City analysis of policing needs by population size. Moreover, DPD’s budget of $654 million pales in comparison to law enforcement agencies in other high-crime jurisdictions, such as New York City or Chicago.