At least 30 people were shot on interstates and highways in New Orleans in 2022, according to information from police. Seven of the shootings were fatal.
Related: 2023 interstate shooting map
Attacks on the highway make up a relatively small percentage of all the shootings in the city, but over the past several years, they've become increasingly common. Another interstate shooting has already been reported this year near downtown.
The trend is in line with a climbing number of killings in New Orleans, which is a general indicator of gun violence. New Orleans ended 2022 with 265 murders, which is about 20% more than in 2021, according to an analysis of information from the New Orleans Police Department and the Orleans Parish Coroner's Office.
Here are five takeaways from the interstate shooting data.
Map of 2022 interstate shootings
These are the addresses where New Orleans police say the shootings happened. Can't see the map? Click here.
1. Most of the shootings are on Interstate 10.
There were 27 interstate shootings reported to police in 2022. Some had more than one victim.
Of those 27 shootings, 23 were on I-10. Four were near downtown on US-90B. No shootings were reported to police on I-610.
Interstate 10 is a main thoroughfare in New Orleans.
The numbers only include shootings that involve death or injury and were reported to police. Some residents say their windows have been shot while they were driving on the interstate, but official numbers for that kind of vehicle damage were not immediately available.
2. I-10 near Louisa Street is a hot spot.
Five of the 27 shootings in 2022 happened on I-10 near Louisa Street, according to information from police. The trend is in line with shooting data from previous years, in which the stretch of I-10 from Louisa Street to Chef Menteur Highway saw more violence than other areas of the interstate in the city.
Both streets are on either side of the High Rise Bridge over the Industrial Canal.
3. Police say it isn't a sniper.
Social media speculation has been swirling for more than a year that the increase in shootings is due to a single person, like a sniper.
New Orleans police this week reiterated their stance that they don't believe the shootings are from a single source.
They say the shootings usually fall into three categories:
- interactions between motorists that escalated into road rage
- pre-existing feuds where shooters are targeting someone they know
- someone caught in the crossfire
4. Interstate shootings are becoming more frequent.
In 2021, at least 26 shootings were reported on the interstates. In comparison, there were five in 2018, according to a Times-Picayune analysis.
Here's a breakdown of the shootings by year.
Graphic by The Times-Picayune
5. There are limited details about suspects.
Details from police about the interstate shootings are generally limited and rarely include vehicle descriptions.
Surveillance images, if they exist, are rarely released publicly.
Police say the investigations remain active and ongoing. They ask anyone with information - "even if it is something that may seem insignificant" - to report it by calling Crimestoppers at (504) 822-1111.
Breakdown of each interstate shooting in 2022
Traffic was backed up toward downtown as New Orleans police investigate a fatal shooting on I-10 at the Crowder Boulevard exit in New Orleans East on Tuesday, January 18, 2022. (Photo by Chris Granger | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
These are the interstate and highway shootings that were reported to New Orleans police in 2022. The details come from preliminary information from authorities and could change as the investigation progresses.
Dec. 29 - A man was driving on I-10 East around 3 a.m. when his car window shattered near the Louisa Street exit. He had been shot and was taken to a hospital.
Dec. 26 - Two people were shot while driving on US 90B East near the Tchoupitoulas Street exit. The two men were shot around 4:15 a.m. and drove themselves to a hospital for treatment.
Dec. 18 - A woman was driving on I-10 East around 8 p.m. when a vehicle swerved around her near Louisa Street and opened fire. She was hit and taken via ambulance to a hospital.
Fatal - Dec. 14 - A 15-year-old was driving on I-10 West near the St. Bernard Avenue exit when someone shot him around 3 p.m., causing him to crash. He was taken to a hospital, where he died.
A car is seen on the rail road tracks as the NOPD responds to a shooting on Interstate 10 at the Carrollton Avenue interchange in New Orleans, La. Wednesday, June 29, 2022. (Photo by Max Becherer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Fatal - Sept. 30 - A man was shot multiple times while driving on I-10 East near the Norman C. Francis Parkway overpass. He was found around 8 p.m. in his vehicle, which was parked on the shoulder of the interstate. He died at the scene.
Fatal - Sept. 27: Two men were shot on I-10 East around 10:15 p.m. near exit 239A-B, which is for Louisa Street. One died at the scene, and the other was taken to a hospital for treatment.
Sept. 25: A 22-year-old man was shot around 1:50 p.m. on I-10 East at North Claiborne Avenue. He was shot multiple times by an unidentified person and taken to a hospital for treatment.
Fatal - Sept. 19: A 30-year-old man was shot in the westbound lanes of I-10 near the Chef Menteur Highway on-ramp. He later died at the hospital.
Sept. 8: A 20-year-old man was driving around 10:30 a.m. near the U.S. 90B East on-ramp at Calliope Street when someone in another car started shooting at him. He was hit in the arm and taken by ambulance to a hospital.
Sept. 3: A man was shot on Interstate 10 East near exit 236B, which is for North Claiborne Avenue. He crashed at the scene around 10:15 p.m.
June 29: A woman was shot on Interstate 10 West at the Carrollton Avenue interchange around 7:20 p.m.
June 17: A woman was driving east on U.S. 90B near the Westbank Expressway when someone shot at her vehicle around 9 p.m. She was hit and drove herself to a hospital. Two other vehicles were hit by bullets as well.
June 15: A woman was shot in the leg on eastbound I-10 near the Bullard Avenue exit around 6:15 p.m.
June 15: A man was shot on westbound I-10 near the Franklin Avenue exit around 10:20 p.m.
June 6: A man was shot on I-10 West near Louisa Street around 10:50 p.m.
New Orleans police investigate a fatal shooting on I-10 at the Crowder Blvd. exit in New Orleans East on Tuesday, January 18, 2022. (Photo by Chris Granger | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
May 20: A man was shot multiple times on I-10 East near Crowder Boulevard around 4 p.m.
May 10: A woman was shot on Interstate 10 East near the exit for Crowder Boulevard when she was shot by someone in another vehicle around 11:45 p.m.
May 2: A 22-year-old woman was shot while driving on I-10 East near South Carrollton Avenue after getting stuck in the middle of a rolling gun battle. The shooting was reported to police at 2:47 p.m.
Feb. 21: A 32-year-old man told police he was going westbound on U.S. 90B East when another vehicle pulled next to him and opened fire near the Tchoupitoulas Street exit around 2:25 a.m.
Feb. 20: Someone was shot while driving on the Interstate 10 High Rise bridge around 12:45 a.m.
Feb. 14: A 35-year-old man was shot on Interstate 10 East around 2:30 a.m. near the downtown exit toward Slidell. Police said his vehicle was stuck between two vehicles whose occupants were shooting at each other.
Fatal - Feb. 2: A man died after being shot multiple times on Interstate 10 West and then crashing his vehicle near Louisa Street around 11 p.m.
Fatal - Jan. 18: A 34-year-old woman was killed in a shooting on I-10 East at the Crowder Boulevard exit. The shooting happened around 3 p.m.
Interstate 10 is a main thoroughfare in New Orleans.
Jan. 18: A man was injured in a shooting on I-10 East near Michoud Boulevard exit. The shooting was reported to authorities at 2:39 a.m.
Fatal - Jan. 15: A man was shot dead and a woman was wounded on Interstate 10 East near Esplanade Avenue.
Jan. 11: Two gunmen flipped their vehicle after shooting another motorist on I-10 West near the 233.4 mile marker at the edge of the Central Business District.
Jan. 9: A 22-year-old man was in the westbound lanes of I-10 near the Elysian Fields Avenue exit when another vehicle drove next to him and shot him.
