RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The police chief in Virginia’s capital city says the public should stop blaming law-enforcement officers for a spike in violence.

Richmond Chief Alfred Durham says people need to hold loved ones accountable and turn them in when crime happens.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports (http://bit.ly/2cd749a ) Dunham spoke during a news conference Friday after two men were killed in the city. He says police are “tired of taking the blame” and are asking residents “to make a commitment to step up and help us help you.”

Seven men have died from gun violence in Richmond the past two weeks. The city reports 41 homicides so far this year, up from 23 to this point last year.

Local officers and Virginia State Police have seized nearly 200 illegal guns in Richmond this summer.