Authorities in Asheville, North Carolina, have confirmed that a deadly shooting in the city’s downtown area, which resulted in two fatalities and injured seven others, was an act of retaliation. However, they have refrained from labeling the incident as gang-related, despite its occurrence in the tourist-friendly Blue Ridge region.
The incident unfolded in the early hours of July 19, near the bustling intersections of Biltmore Avenue and Short Coxe Avenue, a district known for its shops and vibrant nightlife. The Asheville Police Department (APD) reported that officers arrived on the scene at approximately 2:20 a.m., discovering numerous individuals with gunshot injuries.
Despite immediate attempts to save lives, two individuals succumbed to their injuries at the scene. Seven others were transported to Mission Hospital for further treatment. Police officials stated that detectives recovered a significant number of shell casings, indicating the extent of the crime scene.
Visitors stroll through the scenic downtown of Asheville, North Carolina. (Getty Images)
Initially, police indicated that the evidence might link this shooting to a previous gun-related incident. Shortly after, Interim Police Chief Jackie Stepp clarified that the attack was indeed an act of direct retaliation, connected to a shooting that occurred at an apartment complex on July 5.
Stepp said the deadly episode was the “latest chapter” in an ongoing pattern of retaliatory violence across the city. One person was shot in the July 5 incident, she said, and investigators made an arrest in that case.
People walk through downtown Asheville, North Carolina. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
But the chief declined to classify the violence as gang-related at a community briefing on July 24, when reporters pressed her about whether the people involved belonged to rival gangs or families.
“These are two groups of individuals,” Stepp said at the briefing. She said the groups had ties because the people involved knew one another and had committed “ongoing retaliatory acts” against each other.
Interim Asheville Police Chief Jackie Stepp speaks during a community briefing about the downtown shooting that killed two people and wounded seven. (Asheville Police Department YouTube)
Stepp said police had identified several persons of interest in the Biltmore Avenue case but were still working to locate and interview them. She also declined to discuss whether those shot were intended targets or to provide details about the connection between the July shootings, citing the active investigation.
A dawn view of the skyline in Asheville, North Carolina, which has seen rising trends of violent crime in recent years. (Walter Bibikow via Getty Images)
The chief said APD was coordinating with local, state and federal partners as it reviewed evidence and tracked upcoming events and large gatherings.
Stepp later reportedly told ABC local station WLOS that gang activity exists in the city, though she maintained the recent shootings are “not traditional gang activity.”
Homelessness and crime have crept into downtown Asheville, critics say. (Getty Images)
At the community briefing, the question whether the violence should be called gang-related resurfaced when a local pastor who identified himself as a gang-prevention facilitator told Mayor Esther Manheimer he had offered the city a prevention program since 2016.
The pastor asked why the program had not been considered as a way to prevent gang violence. Manheimer said she had recently seen his email and wanted to learn more, but pointed to Buncombe County’s community safety and violence-prevention plan and the city’s existing prevention partnerships.
“We’re always open to looking at other ideas,” Manheimer said, adding that the city was seeking ways to expand and improve its response to community violence.
Manheimer also argued that North Carolina’s loosening gun laws and limits on local gun regulations had made it harder for cities to address the problem.
Asheville is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Buncombe County, North Carolina, and has seen a 31% surge in violent crime from 2016 to 2020. (pawel.gaul via Getty Images)
She said businesses have an increasing responsibility to prevent people from bringing guns into their establishments, though she said recent disputes often escalate after someone retrieves a weapon from a vehicle.
A reporter asked Stepp about prior reporting that a Glock switch was involved. Stepp confirmed the discovery, saying police had recovered one and that “that’s what we saw here.” She did not say whether it came from the shooting scene, a vehicle, a suspect or another piece of evidence.
APD has asked anyone with information about the shooting to call 828-252-1110, submit an anonymous tip through the TIP2APD app or text TIP2APD to 847411.
News Media has reached out to APD, Manheimer’s office and the pastor who raised the gang-prevention program for comment.