PORTLAND, Ore. — A man who checked himself into the hospital with a gunshot wound was shot at a house in the 300 block of Northeast 78th Avenue on Sunday, police said.
According to the Portland Police Bureau, this is the third shooting at that location in the past week.
Last Tuesday, officers responded to a shooting at the house but found no victims. On Saturday morning, police said shots were fired into the home, but no one inside was hurt.
On Sunday, a man suffering from a gunshot wound checked into a local hospital. He's expected to survive, police said.
Officers contacted the victim at the hospital, and their investigation led them to the house in the 300 block of Northeast 78th Avenue between Glisan Street and Everett Street, where they found evidence of a shooting.
Police believe all the shootings are related to the one home, but couldn't say if the shooters or targets are the same. Portland Police Bureau public information officer Sgt. Kevin Allen said they do not know if Sunday's incident was criminal or accidental. They are currently working to determine that.
Neighbors told KGW on Monday that there was gun violence on the street earlier this year, too, and that they've had enough. Some said they feel on edge, with bullets shattering their sense of safety.
The Montavilla community has sent a letter Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and Portland Police Chief Danielle Outlaw about ongoing violence in the neighborhood.
At least two houses near the targeted home were caught in the crossfire and hit with bullets.
"In the boundary of your own walls, for a moment you don't feel safe. That's not a good thing," neighbor Reggie Rasmussen said. "Most of the neighbors have been good, just one group was not so good so therefore everybody is on their toes right now until this thing gets resolved."
Riley Egan and his roommates live in the same duplex as the target house. He said the family inside is very friendly, and this comes as a shock. He was home when shots were sprayed on Tuesday in broad daylight.
"I heard a car wheels like burn out and what sounded like a firecracker and those two noises separately I might think there is nothing to worry about but those two noises together I was like, I feel like I need to get down on the ground," Egan said, "so I got down on the ground for 10 to 15 seconds and saw four little kids run by my window like terrified."
He was considering moving out of the unit but tells KGW the landlord is working to evict the people next door.
"It's definitely unsettling when a car is going by slow now. I'm thinking twice, don’t face away from the window for too long just in case. So you definitely go about your day a little bit differently," Egan said, "I’m sure that will subside eventually but for the foreseeable future I’m probably going to be a little more skittish or wary of that kind of stuff."
Because of the likely eviction, neighbors are hopeful this will pass soon and safety will be restored in the neighborhood.
"I think the neighborhood feels a little bit more at ease that this has come to a conclusion," Rasmussen added.
Sgt. Allen said investigators on the bureau's Gun Violence Reduction Team are looking into whether this string of concentrated shootings is gang-related. They are trying to interview anybody involved but Allen said some haven't been as cooperative as others.
"[It is] particularly galling when it’s broad daylight and people are out and about and families are out and about. So definitely a lot of concern and we hear concern from neighbors that they want this addressed and we’re doing the best we can to make sure that happens," Sgt. Allen told KGW.
If you have any information about this or other gun crimes, please call Portland police at 503-823-4106 or email information go to GunTaskForce@portlandoregon.gov.