Two weeks ago today, the front page of The Buffalo News was dominated by coverage of a horrendous crime in the early hours of the day before. Four young adults were shot and killed while attending a private party at downtown’s City Grill restaurant; four others were injured.

It was Buffalo’s worst carnage in 30 years, made more tragic by its circumstances: Many of the victims were attending an anniversary party for friends who had moved to Texas and returned to celebrate their year-old marriage and baptize a baby.

In the poignant words of the young wife who became a widow Aug. 14: “I left here because of the violence.”

From the moment we learned of the shooting, The News has devoted a great deal of time, space and staff resources to covering its every aspect. Nearly every day, our front page has carried at least one related story — the latest on the police investigation, interviews with community and family members, coverage of the funerals.

One of those front-page stories, though, has stood out, creating significant resentment among some readers and residents, and touching off a fire-storm that included two demonstrations at The News building and the burning of copies of the newspaper.

The story — which ran a week ago today —  reported that, of the eight victims, seven had criminal records. Five were convicted felons. Crimes ranged from felony assault to weapons possession to selling drugs. One of the women who died had used her Jeep Cherokee to run down four women outside a city bar. One of the men had shot an innocent bystander while aiming at someone else.

People are deeply angry that The News reported and published such a story about the victims, not the perpetrators, of a crime. They are especially upset at the timing of the story’s publication, coming only one day after the last of the public funerals.

They believe the paper has been disrespectful and insensitive. And, on a deeper level, they believe that this treatment is tinged with racism. All of the victims were African-American, and some of the protesters have said they believe The News would not have reported on white crime victims the same way.

They have also said that the criminal records of the victims have no relevance.

“The facts are true — I mean, it is what it is,” said Darnell Jackson, the community activist and former gang member who led one of the protests. But, he told a TV reporter: “That’s apples and oranges. What does me being convicted of a crime, or me arrested for a crime, have to do with me getting murdered?”

Jackson, and others, want the paper to apologize.

As editor of The News, and as the person who made the final decision about whether to run the story, where to place and display it, and on what day it should appear, I take these concerns seriously.

Since the controversy erupted last week, I have — in the words of the faith I was brought up in — examined my conscience. I’ve thought about whether an apology is warranted. I’ve listened to two of my own family members who believe some of my decisions were wrong. I’ve been asked on national television whether I think the story was a mistake.

Here’s what I think and feel.

1. The News had a clear obligation to pursue and publish this story. Jackson is simply wrong when he says these facts are not germane. They become more relevant every day, as the pieces of the puzzle — what happened and why — come together. This was not a random shooting that could have happened anywhere. And others are wrong when they say white victims get different treatment in The News; they do not.

2. The story may have been displayed too prominently. I still believe it should have run on the front page, but maybe not with a multicolumn headline above the fold. That was a solid journalistic judgment but one that could have been tempered with greater sensitivity to a grieving community.

3. The story’s timing was unfortunate but unavoidable. At most, we could have waited a day or two. Given fast-moving events and the 24/7 news cycle, to hold back the news is to distort the news.

More important, though, is quite a different point: Where do we go from here?

Shall we burn newspapers or should we move the conversation forward?

Shall we stand on two sides of an abyss and yell at each other, or should we look honestly at the underlying problems — crippling poverty, gang violence, unemployment, the failures of our public schools, racism, the drug and gun culture — and, finally, as a community, begin to wrestle these problems to the ground?

From crisis comes opportunity. This, surely, is a crisis.

Many people have been hurt — four killed — in the past two weeks.

I am truly sorry for offending people, but I also know that sometimes the truth hurts. And only the truth can get us, as a society, where we need to go.

msullivan@buffnews.comnull