JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – City Hall was struck by gunfire during one of two shootings early Sunday morning in Jacksonville, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
Just before 12:50 a.m., according to JSO, police were dispatched to a shooting at James Weldon Johnson Park on West Monroe Street in downtown Jacksonville. Officers said a teenage boy was shot and the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department transported him to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Officers said they were later notified of a man who walked into a local hospital with a gunshot wound that also stemmed from this incident.
While securing the scene, according to police, it was discovered that City Hall was struck by gunfire, but there were no injuries reported inside the building.
There was another shooting around 12:30 a.m. near James Weldon Johnson Park. A teenager and a man were shot, both having non life-threatening injuries. During that shooting the City Hall municipal building was damaged. This picture shows two bullet holes in a window. pic.twitter.com/wl4832kdX0
— Aaron Farrar (@aaronfarrarNews) August 1, 2021
In recent weeks, according to the JSO crime-mapping tool, there have been several incidents reported in the area, including aggravated battery and assault with a deadly weapon.
One downtown business was still boarded up Sunday after Bobby Born, who works downtown, said it was struck by bullets three weeks ago.
“Our building took three bullets in the windows,” Born said. “Just terrible for the business.”
Born said he also heard shots fired a couple of weekends ago and his building along Monroe Street was tagged in graffiti. He said he wants to see a larger police presence downtown.
“I stood on the building’s rooftop one night, 2 or 3 a.m., just watching, and I never saw one police car downtown,” he said.
Born said he hopes the community can come together to put an end to the violence.
The shooting Sunday morning in downtown Jacksonville was one of two reported in the city in a span of fewer than two hours. Police said the other shooting happened about 2:30 a.m. outside a nightclub on Southside Boulevard at Patton Road, just north of Beach Boulevard. Police said three men in their 20s were shot, one of whom died. Police said the other two men were taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
