'Mom! I'm Bleeding!'; 7-Year Old Struck By Stray Bullet, Mother Speaks Out As Dangerous Trend Continues In New York City
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – June has seen a troubling spike in the number of shootings across New York City.
The dangerous trend continued Thursday when a 7-year-old girl was wounded by a stray bullet.
The little girl's mother told CBS2's Andrea Grymes she's just glad her daughter, Kaylee, is alive.
"My daughter, she yelled 'Mom! I'm bleeding!' And I'm like, 'Oh my god!'" said Marlene Joaquin.
Police said the first shooting happened around 6 p.m. on the corner of East 102nd Street and Park Avenue in East Harlem.
Exclusive surveillance video shows Joaquin and her three children - one in a stroller - a few feet away from a group of teens when shots are fired.
The teens start running, but one is hit and falls down. The others help him up to get away.
Seconds later, Kaylee grabs her leg.
"I mind my business, I'm taking my groceries out of my trunk and next thing you know I hear five gunshots, just consecutively, back to back," said Joaquin.
Joaquin said her daughter started screaming and, luckily, was only grazed.
"I checked her and I was like no this is not gonna happen. I called the police right away and I said, definitely, I need an ambulance here...I'm just counting my blessings and thanking god...thank god, this is nothing serious," she said.
Joaquin said she took Kaylee to the hospital and, luckily, she had no bullet fragments in her leg.
Police said the 19-year-old victim, believed to be the intended target, was also expected to be OK.
The East Harlem shooting was one of five citywide Thursday.
MORE: NYC Sees Surge In Shootings As Mayor Balances Calls For Police Reform With Need For Safety
"Of course it's scary, it's not something that you want for your neighborhood," resident Ozan Aksoy told CBS2's John Dias.
"I just thought it was fireworks actually," said resident Claudia Valdez.
Valdez is a mother of two and only lives a few blocks away. She usually lets her kids take a break from school around the time of the shooting.
"Virtual school now, so we try to come out a lot at night, and we're always out during that time," she said. "Luckily, we weren't right when it happened, but it terrifies me."
Dias reported the whole community was still in shock.
"I feel so bad about the kid. You know what I mean? She is so young," one man said.
"It's not right kids are getting shot here," said another.
Last week, police say, there were 53 shooting citywide - up from 12 during the same time last year.
There have been 448 shooting so far this year, after 329 last year.
On Friday, Mayor Bill de Blasio denied the NYPD is pulling back from proactive policing, after disbanding its anti-crime units that largely went after illegal guns.
"No one's pulling back from anything. They're approaching it in a different way," said de Blasio.
WATCH: Mayor Bill de Blasio Holds Daily Briefing
The mayor said a lot of issues are coming to a head simultaneously.
"We have a problem that's profound with the court system not functioning," said de Blasio. "I'm going to talk to the DA's about that. We need gun prosecutions to happen consistently. We have the problem of the parole system and individuals coming out of state prisons, coming back to their communities, without proper support."
All of this comes amid calls and protests to cut the NYPD's budget.
"Police aren't around as much anymore. A lot of people don't want them, but a lot of people do," said Joaquin. "I'm for them."
Six hours after Joaquin's daughter was shot, and four miles away in Manhattan's Flatiron District, a 19-year-old woman was fatally shot and a 21-year-old man was rushed to the hospital.
"Nowadays, too much, too much," one woman said. "We should learn to live with one another."
So far, no arrests have been made in either incident.
"We've talked throughout this week about the challenge we're having right now with shootings, which is job one to address," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday. "That's what I want NYPD focused on first and foremost."
It's still unclear how the mayor will try to curb the violence while also trying to balance the budget, which could include steep cuts to the NYPD, called on by weeks-long protests.
