A man was shot and killed in Hyattsville last week. Then, over the weekend, two mass shootings less than a day apart in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, rocked the nation. And on Monday, Hyattsville City Council gaveled into session.
For Council Vice President and Ward Three representative Carrianna Suiter, the events struck home doubly as she’s both an elected official serving her first term on Hyattsville’s City Council, and a native of Dayton, Ohio.
“The shooting was a block from my elementary school, and this latest bout of violence was entirely predictable,” said Suiter, speaking during the “council dialogue” portion of the meeting set aside for city elected officials to hold forth on any topic they wish. “I really do hope this time perhaps Congress will listen and make an effort to pass impactful gun legislation that will prevent this kind of thing in the future.”
Ward Two Councilor Robert Croslin seemed particularly disheartened by the weekend’s mass shootings, particularly the explictly white-supremacist motives in play in the El Paso massacre. During Council Dialogue, He wondered if his efforts at hyperlocal cross-cultural exchanges were effective.
“I’ve spent a lot of time reading and having events to educate people and getting them to know different cultures, hoping it would help prevent racist events like the one that happened recently,” said Croslin at the end of the meeting. “Lately, I’m disappointed. I don’t know if it’s something that’s working.”
On August 1, 2019, 38-year-old Hyattsville resident Dante Campbell was fatally shot near 4600 Burlington Road in East Hyattsville. Prince George’s County Police are investigating his murder.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the date of Campbell’s murder.
Dante passed on Aug 1st not the 2nd.
Thanks for letting me know. I’ve updated the story and have added a correction notice.