NEW ORLEANS — Charlesha Coler describes hearing a scream from the Almonaster and Florida Avenue Bridge on Sunday.
“I don’t want no mother to experience what my mother is experiencing right now,” Charlesha Coler said. “No mother have to hear the scream my mother had to hear, and the scream I heard.”
On Wednesday, Coler and her mother stood in the same place where her brother was murdered, leaning on their faith and community for support.
Twenty-one-year-old Rasean Carter and nineteen-year-old Malachi Jackson were killed and eleven others were injured in one of two shootings at the annual Nine Times second line.
The incidents happened less than an hour apart, but according to law enforcement were unrelated.
On Wednesday, law enforcement and faith leaders gathered for an emotional call to action, asking the community to work with the NOPD to keep New Orleans’ streets safe.
“It’s about getting in communities at the neighborhood level, walking those neighborhoods with a message of peace,” NOPD Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.
According to Council Member Oliver Thomas, protecting second lines should be a priority for the City.
“How do we have safe and productive events that represent the history of New Orleans,” New Orleans City Councilmember Oliver Thomas said.
At an event Wednesday, we tried asking Mayor Latoya Cantrell how the City plans to keep second lines safe in light of Sunday’s tragedy.
Mayor Cantrell refused to comment on the shootings. New Orleans Director of Communications Terry Davis said Mayor Cantrell would post a video online later.
“That’s what we’ve chosen to do regarding that because she said some very specific things to be able to speak with people,” City of New Orleans Director of Communications Terry Davis said.
For Coler, second lines will probably never feel the same, but she says protecting them is protecting New Orleans’ expression of culture.
Sunday’s shootings are still under investigation. The NOPD arrested a person of interest but is still searching for a suspect.
On Wednesday evening, Mayor Cantrell posted a video message and shared the following statement, "Prayer and community unity is our strongest force multiplier against senseless acts of violence," a post on Instagram said. "We must remain vigilant in our support of the New Orleans Police Department and our law enforcement partners who are working tirelessly to bring those responsible for this horrific act to justice."
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