‘I don’t know how to stop it’ activist says after man killed on Cusseta Road

The Rev. Willie Phillips has been working to clean up the Winterfield neighborhood. So he was saddened Thursday to learn of another untimely death.

“It’s sad, especially in this area with the problems we’ve been having,” said Phillips, founder of Winterfield on the Move Against Drugs. “The crime comes from the outside and I don’t know how to stop it unless we get rid of all the prostitution and shut all the drug houses down.”

Phillips expressed those sentiments upon learning that a man died of blunt-force trauma Thursday morning following a police chase in the area of Cusseta Road. The man was pronounced dead at 11:55 a.m., and his name had yet to be released.

The incident comes a month after city officials tore down the notorious Club Majestic, vowing to revitalize the Winterfield neighborhood. That same week, the neighborhood endured three separate shootings.

Phillips said he has seen a heavy police presence since that time, but was unaware of the police chase until contacted by a reporter.

This story was originally published May 18, 2017 at 2:00 PM with the headline "‘I don’t know how to stop it’ activist says after man killed on Cusseta Road."