Officials say a man was killed and a toddler was hit in the face as gunfire rang out in Baltimore on Saturday.
Police responded to a complaint of gunfire near Pennsylvania Avenue and Laurens Street in the city’s Upton area soon after 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison told reporters.
CBS News said that a guy standing in the street was fatally struck and pronounced dead at a local hospital, while another man was wounded in the arm.
A mother driving down the street with two children, ages 6 and 2, was also struck and smashed into a pole. According to authorities, she was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
The toddler had a gunshot wound to the face, according to Baltimore Councilman Eric Costello.
Police report that the six-year-old was also injured in the collision.
Costello stated that a male adult in the vehicle attempted to flee the scene and was apprehended by police, although his role in the shooting was unclear at the time.
The police are investigating who fired the first shot and if the shooter had a specific target in mind.
Harrison informed reporters that multiple witnesses to the incident existed and begged them to come forward.
“We know that witnesses heard something. “We know that people saw something,” he told the Baltimore Sun.
He stated that the two young children were battling for their life “due to a conflict that could have been resolved in a significantly different manner.”
After the shooting, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott addressed the city’s men directly at a press conference.
“I see a lot of people trying to be tough and acting tough, but they’re actually quite weak, because only weak people shoot someone when they know children are nearby,” he remarked.
“I don’t care whether [you are] hiding that individual because he or she is your homeboy, your guy, or your cousin. Then you, too, are weak. And we must rise to the occasion and be better for ourselves.”
»Baltimore shooting leaves a man dead and a 2-year-old with a face wound«