SOUTH TALLAHASSEE, FL — Gun violence connected to unplanned pop-up gatherings has increased in Tallahassee over the past 90 days, and the city's police chief is asking the community to help stop it.
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Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell says the gatherings are happening with almost no advance notice, leaving little time for officers to respond before violence breaks out.
"What we've noticed significantly this year is our pop-up gatherings," Revell said. "These seem to be really spur of the moment, so there's really no pre-warning that they're going to happen, and very little time for us to react when they do."
Revell said the department has also noticed an unusual trend: more women are now involved in the shootings. Revell says while gun violence statistics have otherwise held consistent over the past 15 to 20 years, primarily involving young men between the ages of 18 and 26, the department has noticed that more females have been involved in recent incidents.
The department is responding to the recent gun violence with a combination of public awareness, technology, and personnel.
Revell said drones will be deployed on weekends to monitor crowds, and detectives and specialty squads are being assigned to these situations.
"It is a combination of the community, technology, and the resources we currently have available," Revell said.
Revell said the violence is not concentrated in one part of the city.
"It's all over the city, really," Revell said. "Anywhere there's a large parking lot, there's a potential for one of these to occur there."
Revell said curfews have been discussed with the county sheriff but that both are opposed to them at this point.
"When you start restricting people's liberties, then it's got to be very, very serious," Revell said. "Curfews are usually the last resort."
The chief is also calling on business owners to take a more active role in securing their parking lots and surrounding areas, where many of these gatherings occur.
Revell said social media influencers who direct crowds to locations could potentially face some responsibility if violence follows a pattern of their posts.
"If we can show a pattern of that behavior and a pattern of the violence following those behaviors, then you may be able to associate some responsibility back to them," Revell said.
TPD says anyone who spots a large crowd forming or sees social media posts about a pop-up gathering is asked to call Tallahassee Police at 850-891-4200. Those who wish to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stoppers.
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