> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Gunshots ring out in neighborhood - URL: https://www.smdp.com/gunshots-ring-out-in-neighborhood/ - Published: 2003-05-20T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T02:09:20.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Community, Santa Monica, #archive-import *Residents angry over violence* *By Daily Press staff* Two shootings in the past two days has residents on edge in an eastside Santa Monica neighborhood. The shootings, which occurred on Sunday and Monday, resulted in no injuries, police said. On Monday at about 4:50 p.m., Santa Monica Police responded to a call from residents in the 1900 block of 20th Street, who said they heard shots fired and then saw two black men fleeing the scene in a small vehicle. No other details could be provided by witnesses, police said. On Sunday, a group of people were shot at in broad daylight at the corner of 17th Street and Michigan Avenue. SMPD officers responded to a call at 1:55 p.m. from residents who reported that a group of men standing at the intersection were the victims of a drive-by shooting. SMPD officers spoke to several witnesses who said two male Hispanics drove by the group of three or four men and fired several shots. The car, described as an older model Chevy Suburban with alloy rimmed wheels, headed south on 17th Street after the shooting, police said. The driver is described as a male Hispanic, between 19 and 20 years old, with short black hair and wearing an unknown colored T-shirt. The passenger is described as a male Hispanic, between 20 and 25 years old, with a shaved head and wearing a white T-shirt. Another shooting occurred on May 9 in the 1800 block of 17th Street. At about 9:10 p.m., SMPD officers responded to the area and spoke to the person who reported the shots to police. The witness said at least two shots were fired, but no suspects were seen in the area. No one was injured. It is unknown whether or not the shootings were gang related. However, the neighborhood has long been an area where gang violence and drug dealing are common. Some residents are angry at what they perceive as a lack of police patrol in the neighborhood and the failure to suppress on-going violence in the area. Peter Tigler, vice chairman of the Pico Neighborhood Association, said while the neighborhood hasn’t experienced any shootings lately, violence flares up periodically. “(The violence) cycles in and cycles out and the city does nothing,” he said. He added that City Hall could run background checks on tenants of publicly-funded apartment buildings in the area and evict those with criminal records. “How would anyone feel if this was in any other neighborhood?” Tigler asked. “Would people put up with it? The answer is ‘no.’” The issue of violence in the Pico neighborhood has been a source of contention between its residents and City Hall for years. When several shootings occurred last year, the SMPD stepped up its enforcement and patrols in the neighborhood, using even a helicopter to monitor the area from above. Anyone with information regarding the shootings should call the SMPD robbery/homicide unit at (310) 458-8451, or the watch commander at (310) 458-8426. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 20, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/052003.pdf?ref=smdp.com)