Deep Ellum shootings spark community safety talks, increased patrols

DALLAS - Four people were killed and at least 15 were injured in three different shootings in Dallas’s Deep Ellum entertainment district on Halloween night. 

A convicted felon with a long criminal history is in custody for shooting seven of those people. David Yancy surrendered to police after seeing his own picture on television.

Now, police are hoping to make more arrests. They’re also meeting with members of the Deep Ellum community about safety concerns.

Deep Ellum Safety

Local perspective:

This will be the first weekend since the deadly shootings in Deep Ellum.

The executive director of the Deep Ellum Foundation said there will be enhanced security measures in place to help ensure patrons are safe. But the details of those plans are being kept under wraps.

On Friday afternoon, the foundation also held a listening session, giving members of the community – residents, business owners, and patrons – a chance to make their voices heard.

Dallas Police Chief David Comeaux, City Manager Kim Tolbert, and Councilman Jeese Moreno were among the city leaders on hand to help answer questions from the crowd.

What they're saying:

"We heard a wide range of things from curfews and managing parking lots. I think there was just a wide range, but overall, I feel like this community just needed to be heard and I feel like this is a continuation of that," said Veronica Young, Deep Ellum Foundation’s marketing manager.

Business owners were especially worried that the violent crime would keep their customers away.

Herbert Wyatt, the owner of Mokah Coffee and Tea said he was looking for a long-term solution.

"Hopefully we picked up some lessons because it’ll be insane again. It’s not like, okay it’s not going to be crazy next time. No, it’s going to be crazy next time. It’s always a question of how do we manage that," he said. "Trying to find a way to where the business can operate. People can have a great time and you can keep people safe. And it’s always a compromise."

Wyatt said the parking lot in front of his story has an attendant who monitors it at night. He said it prevents people from loitering in the parking lot.

He’d like to see other parking lot owners do the same thing.

What's next:

Following the listening sessions, the hope is that community leaders will use the feedback to help develop additional safety plans.

Federal, state, and local law enforcement have also implemented "Operation Deep Cover," a joint operation designed to add more officers to the area and aggressively prosecute those who do break the law. 

Deep EllumCrime and Public Safety