Durham police identify man slain in 3rd shooting death near NC Central in 48 hours

Police have identified a man found fatally shot Monday afternoon on Dupree Street as Michael Askins, 43, of Durham.

It was the third homicide in the area off Fayetteville Street, near the N.C. Central University campus, in less than 48 hours.

Police taped off the area by NCCU’s Farrison-Newton Communications Building while they investigated the shooting, The News & Observer previously reported.

Askins died from his wounds around 1 p.m. in a home in the 500 block of Dupree Street, officials said.

The shooting did not appear to be random, and Askins was not affiliated with the university, according to police.

The Monday homicide came two days after two men were killed in an NCCU parking lot, and just two hours before Chancellor Johnson O. Akinleye called for action from the city, county and state officials.

“We will not live in fear or have our health and well being at risk due to gun violence and crime around our community,” he said. “It has to stop today.”

Police identified the victims of the Saturday shooting as Shamori Brown, 21, and Tavis Rhodes, 18, both of Durham. Neither were N.C. Central students, according to the university.

Kammie Michael, a Durham police spokeswoman, said the two shootings did not appear to be related.

Gun violence ‘ravaging our city,’ says mayor

At a meeting Monday night, Durham City Council members spoke about the Saturday shooting, and the gun violence that Mayor Steve Schewel said was “ravaging our city.”

“We need to do everything we can to stop it,” he said.

Council Member DeDreana Freeman emphasized that Black men are the most frequent victims of gun violence.

“My heart just continues to break,” she said. “It’s just too much.”

“HBCUs (historically black colleges and universities) are sacred places,” said Council Member Mark-Anthony Middleton. “I’m a product of an HBCU ... it wasn’t just the intellectual pursuit, but a feeling of safety.”

As of Aug. 28, there had been 33 criminal homicides reported in Durham this year, according to the Police Department’s website. That was up from 23 by the same date last year and 29 the year before that.

Those with information about Monday’s shooting are asked to call investigators at 919-560-4440, ext. 29529 or CrimeStoppers at 919-683-1200. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for information leading to arrests in felony cases and callers never have to identify themselves.

This story was originally published September 21, 2021 at 12:52 PM.