Innocent Bystander Killed By Crossfire In Crown Heights Shooting
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A wild shooting in Brooklyn on Monday night left two people dead -- one an innocent bystander shot while sitting next to her daughter.
Police say Denise Gay, 56, was caught in the crossfire between Leroy Webster and Randy Johnson. Gay was sitting on a stoop talking with her 20-year-old daughter when she was hit.
"Johnson and Webster got into a dispute. Why? We're not certain," said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
Crime scene detectives were going over the shooting scene in Crown Heights earlier Tuesday, CBS 2's Pablo Guzman reported.
1010 WINS' Carol D'Auria with the victim's sister
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The victim's sister, Barbara, told CBS 2 that Gay, who recently retired as a home health aid, was shot in the head. Gay's family had been planning to celebrate her birthday Friday, but will now be planning her funeral.
"Me and my roommate heard shots," said Kendra Zimmerman, a Crown Heights resident, said. "We live right over here on the block and we thought it might be fireworks or something."
Officials say Webster, a career criminal with a long rap sheet, shot and killed Johnson. After killing Johnson, police say Webster opened fire at responding officers.
Bullet fragments struck Officer Omar Medina, 36, in the arm and chest; Officer Avichaim Dicken was grazed by a bullet. Police say the officers returned fire and Webster is now in critical condition at Kings County Hospital.
The two officers are expected to recover after leaving the hospital on Tuesday.
WCBS 880's Paul Murnane: Mayor Bloomberg Aims At Washington
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"It was a senseless murder and I think another painful reminder of what happens when elected officials in Washington fail to take the problems of illegal guns seriously," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The shooting caps a particularly violent Labor Day weekend in New York City: 42 people were shot in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens.
"It's a shame. It's really unfortunate that people can't go out and enjoy themselves without hurting others," one woman told Guzman.
Kelly said some of the shootings over the weekend were incidents related to the West Indian Day Parade, which has been the scene of fatal shootings in 2003 and 2005.
Do you agree with Mayor Bloomberg that not enough is being done to regulate illegal guns? Or are there enough gun laws on the books? Sound off in our comments section.
