A San Antonio man allegedly shot a landscaper multiple times during a blow-up over leaves at an apartment complex on Wednesday.
Charles Martin, 51, was arrested for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after allegedly opening fire at a landscaper for blowing leaves toward his truck. The 35-year-old male victim is in critical condition with several bullet wounds.
The incident occurred at around 10 a.m. in the 6300 block of U.S. Highway 90 West. Martin reportedly became agitated with the landscaper over the leaves on his vehicle and spoke to management in the front office. Coming out of the office, he allegedly pulled out a handgun and fired “a minimum of 10 times” at the victim, as described by San Antonio police Sgt. Washington Moscoso, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Martin has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 1992, according to Bexar County jail records. His convictions include several crimes against persons, including another aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in 2010.
As recently reported by The Dallas Express, the victims of violent offenders in Dallas tend to be black and Hispanic individuals. For instance, 798 of the 881 aggravated assaults and 1,890 of the 2,267 simple assaults logged this year as of February 29 were committed against minorities, according to data from the City’s crime analytics dashboard.
The Dallas Police Department’s efforts to curb crime overall have been dampened by a chronic officer shortage, with just 3,000 officers fielded despite a City report calling for around 4,000.
Alongside delayed police response times, this deficit has contributed to Downtown Dallas consistently logging more crime than Fort Worth’s city center, comparative studies each month from the Metroplex Civic & Business Association attest. A dedicated police unit and private security guards patrol Fort Worth’s downtown area.