A bloody Christmas is pushing Newark’s rising murder rate to its highest level in seven years. 

Newark and Essex County investigators have two unrelated shooting scenes a mile apart on each side of the Newark and Irvington border. On Christmas Eve, three men were killed at Slick’s Go Go Bar when a bouncer tried to stop a man with a concealed gun from entering the bar. Two employees and a patron were killed and the assailant fled. 

Then, on Christmas night, police say a 13-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy were killed in a shooting that has also left a third young victim hospitalized in critical but stable condition. Police have not released any details, except to say the children were not targeted.

Last year, 82 people were murdered in Newark. But now, with one week left in 2013, the number of victims already stands at 101.