Arguments that turned violent are behind two weekend homicides

Update: The District Attorney’s Office says the gun that killed Joseph Lighty at the Walnut-Locust Broad Street Line station was his own illegal ghost gun. Preliminary information from witnesses to the incident suggest that Lighty instigated the argument with Phillip Riddick, who appears to be a homeless person, according to the DAO.

Even on a cool Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, two heated arguments ended in shots fired and lives lost. “Argument” was the motive that the Philadelphia Police Department ascribed to homicides in West Philadelphia and a Broad Street Line SEPTA station in Center City.

» READ MORE: Man fatally shot on Broad Street Line platform in Center City

Around 1 p.m. Saturday, Nevaughn Beasley was shot and killed, allegedly by his neighbor, on the 1400 block of North 54th Street in West Philadelphia. The 50-year-old attempted to park his red SUV near his home when, police say, Rasheed Morrison approached him.

The two exchanged words, Beasley left his car, and the argument continued. At some point, 29-year-old Morrison allegedly reversed his car into the front bumper of Beasley’s SUV.

Police say that led to a physical altercation that ended when Morrison shot Beasley in the chest.

Beasley was pronounced dead at Lankenau Medical Center. Morrison was taken into custody and charged with murder, possessing an instrument of crime, and criminal conspiracy.

Less than two hours later, at the SEPTA Walnut-Locust Station, Joseph Lighty was killed after an argument that started on Broad Street, police said. The 21-year-old from Hawthorne and suspect Phillip Riddick, a 36-year-old from North Philadelphia, were involved in an “animated conversation that escalated into an argument and fight,” according to police.

The argument continued all the way down to the northbound Broad Street Line subway platform, where police say Riddick’s gun discharged and a bullet struck Lighty in the leg.

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Officers took Lighty to Jefferson Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival. Riddick was arrested by SEPTA police. He was charged with absconding for his failure to show up in court in an unrelated case, police said. Murder charges are pending further investigation.

Crime is a top priority for residents of the city, a Lenfest Institute poll of voters ahead of the mayoral election found. So far this year, 109 people have been killed in Philadelphia, police data as of April 8 show. That is a 15% reduction compared to this date last year.

Last Sunday, children and teens marched down Market Street to protest gun violence.

“The trauma is leading our kids and our young people out here to commit these crimes,” said Mecca Robinson of Forget Me Not Youth Services, which offers transitional housing and programs for children, who attended last weekend’s event. “It’s not just trauma, it’s untreated trauma.”

» READ MORE: Can widespread trauma therapy prevent gun violence? This community leader says yes.

People who experienced trauma and are under stress have a harder time regulating emotions when they feel threatened or that one of their boundary’s has been violated, said Sandra Bloom, a psychiatrist and professor at Drexel University’s School of Public Health.

“We go from zero to 10,” Bloom said. “That’s when, if you have a gun, and your finger is on the gun, you’re more likely to use it.”

While both of Saturday’s homicides are still under investigation, Bloom said that she wouldn’t be surprised if the original cause of the argument behind many violent incidents is minor.

There are techniques to help people identify their triggers and regulate their emotions, for example Cognitive Behavioral Therapy that helps people “slow down” their thinking when they are upset.

“Most people are not taught how to manage emotions,” Bloom said. “They’re just taught what you should or shouldn’t do. That doesn’t help you. "