A man and a woman were shot Sunday afternoon in New Orleans' Desire neighborhood, sending both to the hospital as police worked to piece together what happened. Officers rushed to the scene just before 4:30 p.m. after reports of gunfire, and EMS crews took the two victims to a local hospital.
According to WDSU, the New Orleans Police Department is investigating the double shooting, which happened on the 3000 block of Oliver White Avenue. The outlet reports officers were called to the scene just before 4:30 p.m. Sunday on a report of a shooting, and that both the man and woman were found suffering from gunshot wounds before EMS transported them to a hospital. Accounts of the exact street name vary — WGNO also places the incident on the 3000 block of Oliver White Avenue, while Fox 8 reported officers responded to the 3000 block of Oliver White Street around the same time.
Fox 8 reported that EMS took both victims to a hospital, and that police did not release the extent of their injuries or provide any further information about the circumstances of the shooting. No suspect description or motive has been made public as of Sunday evening.
A Neighborhood That Has Seen Repeated Gunfire
Sunday's shooting is not the first to strike the Desire area or Oliver White Avenue in recent memory. Just ten days earlier, on Thursday, Oct. 15, a woman was shot at least once in the 4100 block of Chef Menteur Highway in the same neighborhood, with WGNO reporting that New Orleans EMS took her to a hospital for treatment.
Other past incidents have also unfolded along the same stretch of road. A man was shot near Oliver White Avenue and Abundance Street on a Tuesday night, according to WDSU, which reported he suffered at least one gunshot wound and was taken to the hospital while the investigation remained ongoing. A separate, earlier shooting on Oliver White Avenue turned fatal: per the same outlet, officers responded to the 2900 block shortly after midnight and found a man who had been shot multiple times and died at the scene.
Violent Crime Across Orleans Parish
The shooting comes amid a broader stretch of violence tracked across the city. From Oct. 12 through 18, Orleans Parish recorded eight reported major violent crimes, including two homicides, two nonfatal shootings and four armed robberies, according to the Metrocrime Weekly Crime Bulletin. The bulletin noted that suspects had been identified and taken into custody in both of that week's homicides.
The bulletin also found that those incidents were spread across the city, with only the 1st District covering Treme and Mid-City and the 2nd District covering Uptown and Carrollton reporting no major violent crimes that week. No arrests or suspect information have been announced in connection with Sunday's shooting, and police have not said whether the case is linked to the broader citywide trend.
