Woman dead, 8 others shot overnight Saturday in Fair Park neighborhood of Dallas
DALLAS — Nine people were shot early Sunday morning in the Fair Park neighborhood of Dallas, and one of the victims, a 21-year-old woman, was killed.
Police say there was a block party at a neighborhood rec center Saturday night. Some people then went to a nearby address on Collins Avenue near Carter Street.
At 11:10 p.m., DPD said that officers responded to a call of shots fired, but gunfire had ended by the time they arrived. Officers remained nearby, according to the department.
"When our officers arrived no more gunfire at that time we did stay in the area patrolling, monitoring the crowd," said Dallas Police spokesperson Kristin Lowman.
Then at 1:35 a.m. Sunday, people started shooting again; DPD said investigators determined that one person started firing shots into the crowd of 45-50 people, and then other people started shooting. Seven women and two men were taken to local hospitals.
Police identified the woman killed as Coriesha Bradford. The other eight victims are expected to survive, according to police.
"They just took my baby away. They took her away," said Tasha Oudems, Bradford's aunt, who helped raise Coriesha. "We taking it very hard. That's our angel and that's our little baby. That's the baby of the family."
Family members of Bradford are demanding answers from police.
"I just want the crime to stop. We got senseless, people just dying for whatever your issue might be. And if you're a coward where you just got to shoot in a crowd, then you're no one," said Oudems.
Police say the shooting was gang-related. Now community members want to know why police didn't remain on the scene and disperse the crowd.
"It wasn't enough. And they was right there before any of that happened," said Oudems. "I was like, they probably finna break it up. That's good. They never broke up nothing."
On Sunday a Dallas Police spokesperson defended their officer's actions.
"There has to be a criminal activity in order for us to take action," said Lowman.
Now Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia is calling for an internal investigation into the incident. In a statement, he said:
"I have many questions about what happened last night that led to the death of a 21-year-old woman, and eight people being injured.
While the preliminary investigation determined officers who responded did not observe criminal activity among the people in the area at the time, this event ultimately led to tragic consequences. Our homicide detectives are currently working to determine who was involved in this incident, and how. I've ordered an internal investigation to determine if we could have handled the circumstances of this call differently.
Every day the men and women of this department work to keep our city safe. It's important that we gather all the facts before coming to any conclusions. I am committed to the highest level of accountability, professionalism and transparency for the Dallas Police Department."
"It made me sad because we always let down. We just got to fend for ourselves," said Oudems. "We definitely wanted them to step it up. We would like for them to step it up and find who did this to my niece."
Police have not identified any suspects in the shooting at this time. They're hoping witnesses who were in the crowd will come forward and share what they know about the shooting with detectives. More than 100 evidence markers could be seen on the street and in the front yard of a home.
Police are asking anyone with information to contact Detective Phillip Wheeler at 214-671-3686 or Phillip.wheeler@dallaspolice.gov.
This is a developing story.
