DALLAS — A recent spike in violence on the streets of Dallas has caused Gov. Greg Abbott to call on the Texas Department of Public Safety to assist the city with crime investigations.
Over the weekend, a wave of violent crimes left seven dead in a 24-hour period.
“We could end up with a murder total that we haven’t seen in this city since 2004,” said Dallas Eric Mayor Johnson.
One of the victims from the weekend was Kenneth Jerome Hamilton, who was shot while he was inside his car at a stop light near Beckley and Clarendon on Saturday, November 14.
When Dallas police officers arrived at the scene on Thursday night they found 57-year-old Hamilton shot in the driver’s seat. The suspect vehicle is believed to be a 2005-2007 blacked-out Chevrolet Tahoe. That same vehicle is being linked to the scene of another shooting that occurred 30 minutes earlier on the same night near North Stemmons Service Road and Empire Central.
Garlin Hamilton says his older brother was simply running an errand and making his way back home at the time he was shot. He wants Dallas police to find the person or persons responsible for killing his brother in order to give his family peace of mind.
“Whoever did it, they didn’t know my brother,” said Garlin Hamilton, the victim’s younger brother.
The void that his loss leaves can't be filled because Garlin Hamilton says Kenneth Hamilton was the backbone of their family. He describes his brother as someone with a kind heart who was always willing to do anything to help a neighbor or even a stranger.
His brother had also become a caregiver for him after he suffered a recent stroke.
“He helped me, you know, with everything, with my grandson. You know, he would just help me put my clothes on, take me where I needed to go, and it’s just hard because he will be truly missed,” he said.
Garlin Hamilton says his grandson has now been helping him as much as he can, but it pains him that at just 8 years old he is beginning to understand the impact of violence.
“With him gone, it’s a whole big piece taken away from our family,” Garlin Hamilton added.
The mother of the victim also relied on him on a daily basis and his younger brother is concerned about her well-being after this loss.
For the Hamilton family, this loss is not only emotionally painful but they also have to worry about covering the costs of funeral expenses, which they are financially unprepared for.
The family has set up a GoFundMe account and say anything would help them through these hard times.
“It needs to stop,” pleaded Garlin Hamilton in regards to the wave of violence in Dallas.
The Dallas Homicide Unit is asking anyone with information regarding this murder to contact Det. Guy Curtis at 214-671-3633 or via email: guy.curtis@dallascityhall.com. You should reference case number 204171-2020.