Columbus police now believe there were four shooters involved in a Sunday morning shooting that injured 10 people, based on shell casings found at the scene along North High Street between 3rd and 4th avenues.
Meanwhile, the Short North Alliance will be meeting with Columbus police Tuesday night to discuss possible steps to take following the shooting of 10 people in the popular entertainment district.
Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther, Columbus Assistant Chief LaShanna Potts and Short North Alliance Executive Betsy Pandora updated reporters at the Graduate Hotel in the Short North.
Potts would not provide information on what guns were used in Sunday's shooting since the investigation is ongoing.
She did mention the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms offer of a $10,000 reward leading to the arrests of those involved.
Pandora said the neighborhood has already worked with the city to add police cameras and police patrols.
"What we're most thankful for is the swift response of so many in our community," she said.
Ginther called the shootings "a stark reminder of the challenges we’re facing with gun violence."
"Gun violence is a public health crisis that what we declared a few years ago. That’s why we set up an Office of Violence Prevention. That’s why we’ve invested historic amounts of money into youth programming and opportunities for young people," he said.
But he said the community needs to help.
“The police cannot solve gun violence by themselves,” he said.
Columbus officials want tougher state gun regulations.
Ginther said Ohio’s gun policies are as reckless and dangerous as any state in America. “It shouldn’t be easier to get a gun than a job in the state of Ohio,” he said.
Ginther said police responded quickly Sunday morning after the shooting happened just before 2:30 a.m.
"We think one of the reasons we had such swift response from the Division of Police and were able to stop any additional shootings or harm were some of the investments in Moonlight and some other things," Ginther said.
Ginther was referring to "Operation Moonlight," an effort to place 40 officers in high visibility areas.
Officials said there were 16 officers in the Short North area at the time of the shooting, including eight special duty officers.
