Dive Brief:
- In the span of one week, there have been multiple shootings around the country related to evictions, including two that left a total of eight people dead.
- A gunman, believed to be upset because of his pending eviction, shot and killed three people Aug. 28 at a Houston rental complex after he lured residents out of their homes by starting fires, according to KTRK in Houston. Two other victims were taken to the hospital and the shooter was later killed by officers from the Houston Police Department.
- The landlord of the property in Houston told KTRK that the shooter turned in his keys on Saturday before being evicted for not paying rent. It is thought that he retaliated by opening fire on residents, according to HPD Chief Troy Finner. The landlord told the station that one of the victims was the property manager.
Dive Insight:
While the Houston shooting made news over the weekend, the incident wasn’t the only recent deadly shooting related to evictions.
In Oklahoma City, two deputies were shot on Aug. 23 while administering an eviction notice at a home. Sgt. Bobby Swartz died after being transported to the University of Oklahoma Medical Center, while Deputy Mark Johns was released four days later, according to KWCH in Wichita, Kansas.
On Aug. 25 in Arizona, Constable Deborah Martinez-Garibay and a shooter, 24-year-old Gavin Lee Stansell, were among four people killed when Martinez-Garibay was serving eviction notice at Lind Commons northeast of downtown Tucson, Arizona, according to the Arizona Republic. Lind Commons’ website lists Tucson-based Apollo Commons Management as the operator.
The Arizona Apartment Association put out a statement saying that its members were shocked and saddened by the violence in Tucson.
“Arizona constables perform difficult, often dangerous work,” the association said in a Facebook post. “Property managers also handle a challenging role with the utmost professionalism. As an association, we will do everything we can to support efforts to ensure their safety in the workplace.”
Currently, evictions are rising across the country and the U.S. Census Bureau projects that 3.8 million renters could be evicted in coming months because of inflation, the end of most COVID-19 related eviction moratoriums and rental assistance payments and rising rent in most major metropolitan areas.
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