17-Year-Old Boy Shot Nearby Sto-Rox High School Stadium Cuts All-Star Football Game Short
STOWE TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- Police say a 17-year-old boy was shot near the Sto-Rox High School stadium tonight. There was an all-star football game going on, but it was cut short.
Stowe Township Police, Pittsburgh Police and Allegheny County Police have been here investigating.
The shooting happened at the intersection of Russellwood Avenue near Dale Street in Stowe Township around 8:30.
Police found the teen with a gunshot wound to his leg. They say he was transported to the hospital and is expected to survive.
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There was an NFBD all-star football game going on - in the second quarter - and the stadium was evacuated.
KDKA spoke with the CEO of NFBD Jordan Rooney, and it was a community-driven game for the youth with top high school senior players from the area. It was the first year the organization had used Sto-Rox for the end of the year celebration that was cut short.
"Is it unfortunate? Yes, but we can't sit around and say, 'poor us we didn't get to finish our football game.' There are bigger things at play here," said Rooney.
He said he heard around eight shots fired, and that it's unfortunate this happened in the nearby neighborhood but everyone was evacuated safely.
"We overstaffed security...it's unfortunate a shooting happened outside of the game, shots into a car, everyone ran and police showed up immediately," Rooney said.
Rooney said NFBD also provides mentoring for the youth as well. And he hopes after this, they can all look for ways to prevent violence.
"What we tell young people is, 'don't get on and complain.' Don't just say, 'hey another shooting, what's Pittsburgh turning into?' What good is saying that? If you are just complaining about bad things going on, you are contributing to the problem. It's easy to focus on the negative, but have you volunteered, mentored, donated or done anything to try and help?" he said.
