BAKERSFIELD, Calif. --- — Officials say three suspects have been arrested following a gang shooting Saturday evening in a Southwest Bakersfield neighborhood.
Bakersfield Police Sergeant Nathan McCauley said "ongoing gang fueds that have been going on for decades" erupted in a gun battle at a house party on the corner of Winchester Road and Remington Avenue.
Penny Obenshain, a resident in that neighborhood, said she "didn't want to think that could happen close to... [her] home," an area she described as safe and quiet.
Authorities located more than 60 bullet casings across several blocks, striking houses, cars and traumatizing residents in the area.
Though no one was injured, residents are still questioning whether their community is still safe.
A Bakersfield crime map shows that 2 homicides and 74 assaults occurred within a two mile radius of the Quailwood community within the last five months.
For perspective, 9 homicides and 352 assaults occurred within a 2 mile radius of the Bessie Owens Intermediate school in East Bakersfield.
Though Southwest communities have a lower assault and homicide rate than communities further East, Bakersfield Councilman Andrae Gonzales says crime can occur anywhere.
“Every single person within Bakersfield lives within one mile of someone affiliated to a gang," Gonzales said. These types of incidents really can happen anywhere," he added.
