FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Members of Fort Pierce's City Commission said they didn't know of potential solutions to the recent episode of gun violence in the city over the weekend.
The Fort Pierce Police Department said three people, one killed in a gunfight with police, died after a series of shootings in a three-block area in the city on Saturday. Officials announced another drive-by shooting close to those shootings on Monday afternoon caused property damage, but nobody was injured.
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The city released a statement over the shooting Monday saying it was sad about the shooting saying its thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.
"Together, we are stronger. Together, we will heal," it read.
WPTV went to the commission meeting to understand council members' solutions and current efforts to address gun violence.
Mayor Linda Hudson said the problem in Fort Pierce isn't different than in any city in the U.S. She said the city is unsure about the solution.
"We're looking for it too, but every city in America is having this kind of problem. So, we're open to it and we're working on a lot of the things that need to happen," Hudson said.
"That sounds like you don't know what the solution is," WPTV's Ethan Stein told Hudson.
"Well, do you know what the solution is?" Hudson asked Stein.
"I wasn't elected to, you know, run the city," he answered.
"We're continuing to work on everything that we can," Hudson said.
She said the city collaborates with the school system on a roundtable executive to keep young people safe, performs community policing projects and has police officers play sports and help with homework with kids in poverty to reduce gun violence. Hudson also said it's working on improving economics to stop crime as an option.
"It's a one-on-one thing trying to show these kids there's another way to live rather than use a gun," Hudson said.
Fort Pierce police said the man, Bernard Smith, who was shooting at police officers was 28.
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Commissioner Arnold Gaines said he knows some of the victims, which has made recent events more tragic for him. He also said he doesn't know the solution.
"I don't have the answers and I know everybody thinks that because we sit up here, we should have the answers," Gaines said. "I'm looking for the answers. I'm hurting."
Commissioner Curtis Johnson Jr. said he also knows some of the victims. He said many are his neighbors and mentioned an autopsy might show drugs as a possible motive for shootings.
"We understand what they might be on or taking and that may lead to some clues," Johnson said.
Commissioner Jeremiah Johnson indicated the amount of money the state legislatures appropriate to issues within the criminal justice system in the state budget, which a lobbyist from GrayRobinson estimated at 6%, was partially to blame for the episode of violence. He said the city should look at programs to stop gun violence.
"We have to figure out what resources we have to attribute to combatting these changes in our environment," he said.
