In just the first 19 days of the year, five people have been shot and three of those were killed in the city of Merced.

MERCED, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A recent spike in violence has prompted the Merced Police Department to increase patrols and expand gang suppression efforts across the city. Police say five people have been shot in Merced so far this month – three of those shootings were deadly.

Merced pedestrians who don’t cross the road in a crosswalk, commonly called jaywalking, face potential citations under a new local law.