Aug 6, 2007 11:26 pm US/Eastern
Residents Fed Up, Call For Booker To Resign
Execution-Style Killings Devastate Communities In Newark
By Dave Carlin, CBS 2 News
NEWARK (CBS) ―
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Four young people, including three active students at Delaware State University, were shot in the head at close range in a school parking lot, killing all but one.
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Newark Police are searching for clues in the execution-style shootings.
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The shocking executions are an outrage, even in a city that has seen more than its fair share of crime.
On Monday, CBS 2 HD was in Newark, where community leaders are under pressure to take back the streets.
Bright, young college students executed in their prime and police and the county prosecutor say it appears it was over nothing. They were victims randomly selected for slaughter.
While Mayor Cory Booker said this breaks Newark's heart, baffled and outraged residents said what broke is the camel's back -- a last straw that has them demanding that Booker resign.
"I am tired of it. Mayor Booker, resign today. Director McCarthy, resign today. This is a community problem, but it's your fault. The bodies are laying in the street," Take Back Our Streets activist Donna Jackson said.
But others say Booker must stay and prove the city can solve this.
Ways of fighting back could include:
*More patrols. Booker says that is already happening.
*Sending in state troopers. Gov. Jon Corzine has made that offer.
*A new, tougher curfew.
Booker said there are no simple fixes. Corzine agrees, but has made a vow.
"We will do everything we can to provide the funding within overall needs of society," Corzine said.
Added Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura: "It is not due to a lack of resources. It's young people out here armed to the gills ... got no respect for human life and they kill one another at will."
This tragedy brings the number of murders in Newark to 60 so far this year, three fewer than this time last year.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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