In just seven days, five people have died in shootings across Nashville, while others have been struck by stray bullets. Marcia Coachman watched as her friend Jose became another victim during a particularly violent week.
"We heard about 20 shots, 20 or more," Coachman said. "But that's a daily routine here in the projects. You hear shots every night."
On Thursday morning, police said gunmen in two or three vehicles were involved in a shootout in the parking lot of a gas station at 24 Lafayette Street. A man named Jose was walking out of the gas station, on his way to work, when one of those bullets hit him.
"Jose was probably not even thinking about it, you know?" Coachman said. "He's just coming out of the store. He’s just a helpless victim."
Coachman helped her friend Jose stay still until an ambulance arrived to take him to the hospital. Police on the scene said he was in serious but stable condition.
But Coachman said this most recent shooting has left her fed up and ready to find a new home.
"I’m from Jersey, and I’ve been here a little over two years," she said. "I’m ready to leave Nashville period because it’s really getting bad."
