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Neighbors Sound Off At Meeting After Shootout Steps From School In Aurora

AURORA, Ill. (CBS) -- A shootout happened recently just steps from a school in Aurora – way too close for comfort for parents and students.

As CBS 2's Jermont Terry reported, community leaders got an earful Wednesday night.

People packed an emergency meeting – all wanting to know the attack plan after the shootout caught on camera left them scared and confused.

Video showed people opening fire in an alley in the Hometown neighborhood of Aurora on Thursday, Oct. 10. An elementary school is located on the other side of the soccer field.

That shooter then ran around the corner and fired multiple times with a semi-automatic pistol. A woman in the background is so stunned by what's happening, she drops her belongings before turning and running for her life.

The images brought a crowd out to a community meeting Wednesday night.

"I'm still concerned," said Lamont Hopson. "I'm still concerned with the progress of the investigation."

Hopson lives in the Hometown community where the brazen shootout between two guys happened. While the men opening fire on one another was surprising enough, Hopson is just as worried about the woman spotted on camera running for her life in his backyard.

"When I saw the video and I saw that little young girl run, I'm thinking, my grandbaby is always out playing, so I was concerned with that," he said.

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin shares the community's outrage about the crime, and the fact that it took place in the middle of the day.

"And I was appalled when I saw that video, where young people would be so brazen to pull out a gun in the middle of the day and run through a neighborhood shooting with little kids playing," Irvin said.

Yet police insist despite the severity of the crime, which was still under investigation as of Wednesday night, shootings are down nearly 9 percent from last year.

"When someone sees something like this occurring, all that matters to them is the fact that they saw it," Irvin said. "And we've got to put something in place to ensure they don't see crimes like that, and that crimes like don't happen in city of Aurora."

And while most residents understand such a shootout might not be that common, some believe there is one key contributing factor.

"We're not seeing the patrols – here's the crime," said concerned resident Al Hendricks.

People voiced how they want officers out not only at night, but during the day.

"I don't see any patrol cars," Hendricks said. "The patrol cars show up pretty much after school."

Police assured everyone they would beef up patrols, but reminded people they need to call whenever they see something out of the ordinary.

No one has been arrested in the shootout.

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