Dozens killed, more than 100 shot during an explosion of gunfire
New York City NY July 6, 2020
A weekend meant for celebrating the birth of our great country was instead an explosion of gunfire leaving almost dozens dead and several hundred injured.
At least 32 people were killed in shootings in cities across the US during Fourth of July celebrations across Saturday and Sunday
In Chicago 63 people were shot, 17 of them fatally, in various bouts of gunfire
One of the victims killed was seven-year-old Natalie Wallace
Overnight shootings in New York City left four people dead and 37 injured.
NYPD said two officers were injured in the Bronx late Saturday after a bullet was fired through the windshield of their marked SUV
The violence continued into Sunday, with a 14-year-old child left in a ‘serious condition’ after being shot in the chest in Manhattan.
Shootings in New York City have doubled every week for the last three weeks.
Memphis, Omaha and Cleveland also reported an alarming number of shootings.
An investigation is also underway in North Carolina after a 74-year-old woman was killed by what police described as reckless ‘celebratory gunfire’.
Chicago, appeared to experience the worst of the violence across the weekend as 63 people were injured and 17 were killed, including two children. Meanwhile in New York City, 44 people were injured and at least six have been killed.
Two New York City cops were also injured in the Bronx after a bullet smashed through the windshield of their SUV.
The cops had just pulled up to the intersection on Alexander Ave. at E. 138th St. outside the 40th Precinct station house when the bullet pierced through the windscreen.
Chilling surveillance footage shows two pedestrians crossing the street in front of the idling SUV just moments before the bullet is seen piercing the windshield, sending a puff of debris shooting up from the vehicle’s hood.
The round passed between the two officers, who were sat in the front seats, and embedded into a divider between the back seats, authorities said.
One officer was cut in the face from shattered glass while the other suffered ringing ears. Both were treated for their injuries at local hospitals. No arrests were immediately announced.
The incident came amid Independence Day celebrations that saw dozens shot, including multiple murders, in the city.
The violence continued into Sunday, with NYC Scanner reporting that a 14-year-old child had been shot in the chest in Manhattan.
The incident was said to have taken place at 165 Madison Ave sometime around 7pm ET. The child was transported to Mount Sinai Hospital is believed to be in a serious condition.
A triple shooting also reportedly took place at 306 East 171 Street in the Bronx just before 8:30pm on Sunday.
Two victims of the victims are ‘likely to die’, law enforcement sources said. The nature of their injuries or the circumstances leading up to the shooting remain unclear.
Meanwhile, one of the children killed in Chicago was identified by her family as seven-year-old Natalie Wallace.
The girl was playing outside her grandmother’s house in the city’s Austin neighborhood during a Fourth of July party when a vehicle pulled up and three men emerged and began shooting indiscriminately at about 7pm.
Natalie was shot in the head and rushed to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Seven other people were wounded in the same Austin attack, including a 32-year-old man who is now in fair condition.
Gunfire broke out in cities across the US during Independence Day celebrations on Saturday, leaving dozens of people injured and at least 27 dead. Police are pictured at the scene of a shooting in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood where eight people were struck by gunfire +15
Gun violence unfolded across the US over July 4 weekend including:
New York City: 37 injured, 6 killed
Chicago: 63 injured, 17 killed
Philadelphia: 14 injured, 5 dead
Baltimore: 8 injured, 1 killed
Detroit: 5 injured, 2 killed
Greenville: 8 injured, 2 killed
Memphis: 4 injured, 1 killed
Omaha: 8 injured
Cleveland: 4 injured
St. Louis: 11 injured, 3 killed
Another shooting in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood left four people dead, including a 14-year-old boy who has not yet been identified.
Four others were wounded in that shooting, including boys ages 11 and 15.
The Tribune reported that four men stormed a holiday gathering and opened fire before fleeing the scene. They have yet to be arrested.
Three other shootings in Chicago on Saturday killed a 34-year-old woman, a 31-year-old man and a 20-year-old man, per ABC7.
In a shooting in Lawndale, on the city’s West Side, six people were shot at about 1.15am after someone in a vehicle fired into a group shooting off fireworks.
A 20-year-old woman was killed and three men were left in critical condition. Two other men are in good condition following the shooting.
Last year in Chicago over Fourth of July weekend six people were killed and 63 were wounded by gun violence.
Saturday marked the city’s third consecutive weekend where a child under 10 has been fatally shot.
The Chicago Police Department deployed 1,200 additional officers over the weekend with a goal of reducing violence that accompanies the holiday each year.
‘It’s not just on the police department. Not just on the fire department. Not just on elected officials,’ Mayor Lightfoot said in announcing the increased police presence.
‘All of us have to embrace our notion of community and think about what we can do, each of us in our own way, to make our communities safe and healthy and vibrant.’
Many other cities reported an alarming increase in gunfire mixed in with the celebratory fireworks on Saturday.
In St. Louis, three people were killed and 11 injured across a 15 hour period. Four of the injured victims were children.
In one of those shootings, a four-year-old has been left in critical condition after being shot in the head by a stray bullet in the Vandeventer neighborhood around 10.45pm Saturday.
Thirty minutes later, a seven-year-old girl, a 45-year-old woman and a 25-year-old were shot on the 1100 block of East Gano.
They had been standing outside when two suspects fired shots at them from an alley, police said. Their conditions weren’t given, but police said their vitals were stable.
A family of five people was driving home from a cookout when they were shot around 1am on Saturday in the 8300 block of Homer Street when someone pulled up beside them and started shooting. A 39-year-old woman died in the shooting. A 40-year-old man is in critical condition and the three other male victims – aged nine, 12, and 15 – are expected to survive +15
At least seven shootings were reported in Memphis, Tennessee, on Saturday, leaving four people wounded.
Two people were fatally shot when gunshots rang out at the Lavish Club in Greenville, South Carolina just before 2am Sunday.
Just hours earlier at another Greenville nightclub, another security officer was also shot.
And in Omaha, Nebraska, police have asked the public for information on six separate shootings reported between Friday night and early Saturday morning.
Eight people were injured in those shootings and all are expected to recover.
In Philadelphia, five people, including a six-year-old boy, were killed and 14 were hurt in 12 separate shootings across the weekend.
The first shooting was reported around 10.30pm on Saturday where a 37-year-old woman was shot twice in her legs and a 21-year-old male was grazed by a bullet in the head. Both are in stable condition.
A second shooting left two men, 26 and 22, suffering gunshot wounds to the leg. Both are in stable condition.
Then on Sunday, around 1pm, a six-year-old boy was shot in the chest at a home on the 4600 block of Kendrick Street, in the city’s Upper Holmesburg neighborhood.
The boy died hours later from his injuries after being rushed to a hospital by a family member.
It was not immediately clear what led to the shooting or if police had identified any suspects.
Just over an hour later, a 37-year-old woman was on the 1900 block of Clarence Street when a gunman opened fire at 2:13pm.
The woman was shot 12 times in the torso. She was pronounced dead at Temple University Hospital at 2:38pm.
A weapon was recovered, and a person was arrested in connection to the shooting. Police have not yet revealed the suspect’s identity or revealed any details in the circumstances that led to the shooting.
An investigation is also underway in North Carolina after a 74-year-old woman was killed by what police described as reckless ‘celebratory gunfire’.
Durham police were called at 11pm Saturday to a report of a gunshot wound along the 500 block of Burlington Avenue. The victim, Paulette Thorpe, was taken to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead shortly after arriving.
Last night as people throughout Durham peacefully celebrated the July Fourth holiday with their friends and family, a small few chose to put our community at risk by carelessly firing guns into the air,’ Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said
‘This reckless behavior led to the tragic death of Ms. Paulette Thorpe,’ she said. ‘Ms. Thorpe’s death reminds us that we as a community must work together to prevent these senseless acts, so that no family suffers such a tragedy ever again.’
