3 Shot In Homewood, Including 2 Children, At Vigil
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Police are looking for two men who shot into a crowd of people in Homewood, injuring three people, including two children.
Police say the shooting happened just after 9 p.m. at the intersection North Lang Avenue and Monticello Street.
Assistant Public Information Officer Emily Schaffer says the victims were a 3-year-old, a 12-year-old and a 49-year-old woman. The 3-year-old was grazed by a bullet in the head and the 12-year-old was shot in the leg. All three victims are in stable condition.
"There was some type of gathering happening here," said Schaffer. "Two men wearing dark hoodies, dark clothing approached the house and opened fire at the people at the residence."
The two shooters ran away from the scene after firing dozens of shots.
People were gathered at a house for a vigil, honoring a man who was gunned down two years ago in Homewood.
The grandmother of the 12-year-old shot described the chaotic scene.
"Someone started screaming, the babies, the babies," said Carol Speaker. "So I jumped up, started looking for my grandson who is 4, and my granddaughter said "'My leg, my leg.' I tried helping her but my son came out of nowhere and tackled me, because there was still gunfire, there was so much gunfire. It just seemed like it was going on forever."
Several vehicles were also hit by the gunfire.
"This mess down in Homewood has got to stop," said Wynona Harper. "We have children dying in the streets daily, how are they getting these guns?"
Harper lost her son to gun violence 18 months ago. Her son Jamar was shot and killed in Penn Hills back in November of 2013. Harper was at the vigil to help lead the remembrance of another young man killed by gun violence. She left the vigil about 10 minutes before the shooting.
"Who keeps us safe? Because our children are not safe in Homewood, with this violence taking place on a day-to-day basis."
Michelle Gilmore's aunt was shot during last night's chaos.
"I'm not going to give up on my community, this is where I was born and raised and I'm not going to stop as far as peace on our streets. I can't and I won't," she said.
Thursday police on bikes made the rounds.
Councilman Ricky Burgess, who advocated for the shot spotter program, said a camera that rotates based on the sound of gunfire is in place nearby and could help the investigation. And he's advocating for more technology.
"I'm working on bringing smart phone application to Pittsburgh so that the average citizen can report crime both anonymously and upload video and audio. We think those things will help," he said.
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