El Paso community meeting to look at growing crime, public safety concerns

Daniel Borunda, El Paso Times
·2 min read

A rash of recent shootings and other crimes will be the topic of a community meeting on public safety on Wednesday night involving residents, elected leaders, school and law enforcement officials.

The public safety roundtable will be hosted by East Side city Rep. Isabel Salcido and El Paso County Commissioner Carlos Leon, who was previously the El Paso chief of police.

The public meeting will be at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 1, in the board room of the El Paso Community College Administrative Services Building A at 9050 Viscount Blvd.

El Paso police and multiple other law enforcement agencies surround Cielo Vista Mall after a shooting on Feb. 15 that killed an 18-year-old man and wounded others.
El Paso police and multiple other law enforcement agencies surround Cielo Vista Mall after a shooting on Feb. 15 that killed an 18-year-old man and wounded others.

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"I understand my constituents and others are concerned with the recent news of various crimes taking place," Salcido said in a tweet. "It is important to know that all their feelings are valid and are being heard by their leaders. As an elected official, our most basic duty is to keep our citizens safe."

East Side city Rep. Isabel Salcido will host a public safety roundtable meeting amid concerns about violent crime in El Paso.
East Side city Rep. Isabel Salcido will host a public safety roundtable meeting amid concerns about violent crime in El Paso.

The meeting is near Cielo Vista Mall, where a 17-year-old man was killed and three other people were wounded on Feb. 15 during a shooting in the food court. A 16-year-old boy was arrested on murder and aggravated assault charges. The boy was shot and wounded by a bystander with a license to carry a firearm.

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The Cielo Vista Mall shooting re-ignited fears, anxieties and trauma among some residents reminded of the racist anti-Latino massacre that killed 23 people at the neighboring Walmart store on Aug. 3, 2019.

In recent weeks, there has been a rash of shootings and other crimes involving teenagers and guns, including Monday's police chase involving an armed 18-year-old man ending at Bassett Place.

For more information on the public safety roundtable, call 915-212-0005.

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This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso community meeting to look at crime, public safety concerns