One person is dead after a shooting in Visalia

VISALIA ,Calif. (KFSN) -- One man is dead after being shot on a sidewalk near Downtown Visalia. It happened outside a home on Highland Street near Houston Avenue.

Police first got a call of an assault with a deadly weapon just before 6pm Thursday night, and when they arrived on scene, they found a man dead from a gunshot wound. Police say there are initial reports that at least one man was seen leaving the area after the shooting.

The violent crimes unit was on scene more than three hours after the shooting, canvassing the neighborhood and talking to neighbors. They're hoping someone can come forward with some useful information.

Lt. Amy Watkins with the Visalia Police Department said, "One thing I've noticed in these neighborhoods is there's a lot of pride in these neighborhoods, so if subjects will come forward, it would be in this neighborhood, so hopefully we will get some good information and we can do our jobs."

Police say they haven't determined yet whether this shooting was gang-related, and they're not identifying the victim at this point.

This is Visalia's fifth homicide of the year, but overall police say violent crime is downtown across the city.