Durham police rushed to the 900 block of Fiske Street around 9 p.m. Monday after reports of a shooting that left two men and a woman with gunshot wounds, all hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. The call sent officers to a stretch of Fiske Street that has seen its share of gunfire in years past, adding another entry to a city already grappling with elevated shooting numbers in 2026.
According to WRAL, the Durham Police Department received reports of the shooting in the 900 block of Fiske Street Monday night. Police found two men and a woman with gunshot wounds, and all three were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. Police said the investigation remains ongoing and have not released details about a suspect description or how the shooting unfolded. The station's report does not indicate what led up to the gunfire.
A Street With a History of Violence
Fiske Street is no stranger to serious crime. The Durham Police Department previously investigated an aggravated assault and armed robbery in the 1100 block of the same street in November 2022, a case that led to dangerous weapon charges against two suspects whose bonds were set at $150,000 each, according to a City of Durham report. Nearby, a June 2017 armed robbery shooting near the intersection of Fidelity Drive and Fiske Street turned into a homicide investigation that ended with second-degree murder guilty pleas, per records from Bull City Homicide; the victim in that case was 62 years old, and three suspects were ultimately charged.
Monday's shooting also lands amid a leadership shift at the top of the Durham Police Department. Stephanie Mardis was formally sworn in as the department's 17th police chief on September 18, 2026, after taking over executive leadership of the agency on September 8, according to Wisevoter. Mardis took the job after more than 24 years of law enforcement experience in Greensboro.
A Mixed Picture on Gun Violence
Chief Mardis inherits a complicated public safety picture. Overall violent crime across Durham fell by 16.9% in 2025 compared to 2024, driven by reductions in aggravated assault and firearm-involved shootings, per a report cited by Wise. But that progress has not fully carried into this year: Durham Police Department tracking data logged 340 criminal shooting incidents citywide through August 8, 2026, resulting in 121 people shot and 15 fatalities, a slight increase over the 329 incidents recorded during the same stretch of 2025, Hoodline previously reported.
The city also recorded 13 homicides in the first quarter of 2026, a 44% surge over the nine homicides logged in the same period of 2025, according to the same Hoodline report. That spike occurred before Mardis took over department leadership. Outside city limits, the Durham County Sheriff's Office recorded an 8.7% overall decrease in major “Top 8” index crimes across unincorporated county jurisdictions in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period a year earlier, with notable declines in motor vehicle break-ins and property crimes, the sheriff's office reported.
What Comes Next for the Investigation
Monday's shooting adds to a string of recent gunfire across Durham. Just over two weeks ago, Hoodline reported on a double shooting on Durham-Chapel Hill Boulevard that left one man clinging to life, while another October shooting left a Durham woman wounded on Carpenter Fletcher Road in a case where police said she knew the shooter. A man was also shot at the Mission University Pines Apartments around the same time, and in late September a man died following an early-morning shooting on the Rigsbee Avenue strip.
If a structure or vehicle was struck by gunfire in Monday's shooting, state law carries steep consequences. Under North Carolina General Statutes § 14-34.1, willfully discharging a firearm into an occupied building or vehicle is a Class E felony punishable by up to 63 months in prison, escalating to a Class D felony when a firearm is discharged into an occupied dwelling, according to the Olsinski Law Firm.
Police have not said whether any charges are pending in connection with Monday's shooting, and the investigation remains active. Anyone with information is urged to contact Durham CrimeStoppers at 919-683-1200, which offers cash rewards of up to $2,000 for tips leading to a felony arrest in active cases.
