Some Over-the-Rhine residents, tired of deadly gunfire riddling their neighborhood, say it's time to concentrate on criminals rather than finding fault with Cincinnati police.

        “Black people are killing black people,” said Lucille Smith, a lifelong resident of Over-the-Rhine, a predominantly African-American community.

        “It's getting worse now. I can't sit in my own house without hearing guns going off every night.”

        City officials and community leaders agree.

Ex-Judge Leslie Isaiah Gaines hugs a young man Friday in Over-the-Rhine during an anti-violence event. (Glenn Hartong photo) | ZOOM |

        The Rev. Damon Lynch III and Keith Fangman, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, who disagree frequently about police-community relations, have said they plan to meet to discuss the recent increase in shootings.

        “Black-on-black violence is taking our people out,” the Rev. Leslie I. Gaines said as he led more than a dozen anti-violence supporters through Over-the-Rhine streets Friday afternoon.

        Residents should rally against violent crime, rather than solely concentrating on complaints of police brutality, added the Rev. Mr. Gaines, a former Hamilton County judge.

        “Look at what we are doing to each other. We are killing ourselves far more than the police. We have to be accountable for what we are doing to ourselves.”

        Among the signs of increasing violence:

        • Between April 1 and May 28, 33 nonfatal shootings were reported by Cincinnati police, compared with six during the same period in 2000.

        • Five months into 2001, there were 20 homicides; for all of 2000 there were 29.

        Virtually all the shootings occurred in predominantly black neighborhoods, most in Over-the-Rhine.

        Thursday evening two black people, a man and woman, were shot but not seriously wounded at 1335 Vine St. Police were seeking a black man with pulled-back dreadlocks who was wearing a gray, hooded sweat shirt.

        Mr. Fangman has long urged city officials to examine the issue of violence in black neighborhoods, even before the riots.

        “This is an epidemic of horrific proportions,” he said.

        Over-the-Rhine resident Kimberly West said that reducing crime in her neighborhood should be a top priority, followed closely by police division reform. She is tired of the escalating violence: “Everybody here is tired of it. ... We are hurting ourselves,” said Ms. West.

        Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken applauded the Rev. Mr. Lynch and Mr. Fangman's announcement to work together.

        “It's wonderful that he and Damon are connecting on these kinds of issues. That's a very healthy development,” said Mr. Luken.

        He also said Cincinnati Community Action Now (CAN), a mayor-appointed commission, will be addressing measures to reduce crime, and that he will join the Rev. Mr. Lynch and Mr. Fangman in the discussions.

        The Rev. Mr. Gaines plans another walk-through of the neighborhood near Findlay Market today at noon and will continue such walks each Saturday.

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