美国国家公共电台 NPR--Police in New York and D.C. open a joint probe into shootings of homeless men

Police in New York and D.C. open a joint¹ probe into shootings of homeless men

Transcript²

Five attacks this month against people experiencing homelessness in Washington, D.C., and New York City have left two people dead, and police scrambling³ to find a suspect.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

A shooting suspect is now in police custody⁴. He is accused of targeting five people experiencing homelessness in the District of Columbia and New York City. Two men died; three others were hurt in the violent attacks. Reporter Martin Austermuhle from member station WAMU here in Washington joins us now. Martin, there is new information on this story that is unfolding this morning. What can you tell us?

MARTIN AUSTERMUHLE, BYLINE⁵: Yeah, this is very new information. Police in Washington say they arrested a man only hours ago that they say is linked to the five attacks in both cities. He was stopped on a street in southeast Washington and taken into custody, and he is now being questioned by homicide detectives. Now, remember, this all comes less than 12 hours after officials from both cities pleaded with the public to help identify the man. They upped a reward to $70,000 and said they would leave no stone unturned in this joint manhunt and investigation⁶.

MARTIN: So this same person is being accused of these attacks in two different cities. I mean, what else can you tell us about what investigators⁷ are looking into about motive⁸?

AUSTERMUHLE: That's the one thing investigators said yesterday, they didn't really understand why this was happening. They didn't have any motive or explanation. They said that the shootings had largely been unprovoked. They happened in the early morning hours. No one was giving any warning that it was going to happen. The same gun was used for the two killings⁹; one was in Washington, the other one was in New York. The one thing officials did actually have, which helped them, was very clear images of the suspect's face, which were caught on multiple surveillance cameras in Washington last week, and they were shared widely yesterday.

MARTIN: So, clearly, these are already vulnerable populations, folks who are living on the street. This, something like these violent attacks, no doubt underscores the challenges with homelessness that a lot of big cities are facing.

AUSTERMUHLE: Yeah, absolutely. And homelessness has been on the rise in many cities, including Washington and New York. And plenty of advocates in the district specifically have told me that as homelessness has become more visible, it's become more dangerous for people experiencing it. They're more likely to become victims of crime. Now, New York Mayor Eric Adams and Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser say and they have said that they've taken every effort to help people get off the streets. But they've both been criticized, Adams for banning unhoused people from sleeping on the subway, and in Washington's case, Mayor Bowser has been criticized for clearing some large homeless encampments. Advocates say these measures are counterproductive and can push people further to the margins¹⁰ where they're even more at risk. Now, homeless advocates like Ceymone Dyce of Pathways to Housing here in Washington told me that these recent attacks highlight some points that they say are critical for the public to understand. This is what she had to say.

CEYMONE DYCE: The cure for homelessness is a home, but in addition, understanding that people living on the streets without a home, they are far more likely to be victims of crime than they are to commit crime.

AUSTERMUHLE: Now, Dyce and other advocates in Washington specifically are pushing the mayor to increase funding for homeless services this week, specifically for housing. And tomorrow, we'll know whether she has listened as she's set to release her proposed budget for the city for the coming year.

MARTIN: Meanwhile, this investigation into these attacks continues. Martin Austermuhle from member station WAMU, we appreciate it. Thank you so much.

AUSTERMUHLE: Thanks for having me.

1 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

7 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

9 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

10 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。