Mass shooting in Baltimore leaves 2 dead and 28 wounded ahead of July 4 holiday
- Police said at least two people died in the early hours of Sunday with three of the injured in critical condition. The suspect and motive are unknown
- The shooting comes amid gatherings around the country leading up to the July 4 holiday. Elsewhere, a shooting in Kansas left seven people with gunshot wounds
Two people were killed and 28 injured after gunfire erupted at a block party in Baltimore on Sunday, leaving an extensive crime scene that marred the US holiday weekend, police said. Three of the wounded were in critical condition and more than a dozen were under the age of 18.
The shooting took place just after 12:30am when at least two people opened fire at a block party in the Brooklyn Homes area in the southern part of the city, said Richard Worley, Baltimore’s acting police commissioner. No arrests had been made by late afternoon. Worley said it was not clear if the shooting was targeted or random.
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The violence in Baltimore occurred as federal prosecutors there this week touted their efforts to reduce violent crime in the city. Police have reported nearly 130 murders and close to 300 shootings so far this year, though that is down from the same time last year. Police have vowed to crack down aggressively on repeat violent offenders.
Nine of Sunday’s victims were taken by ambulance and 20 walked into nearby hospitals with injuries from the shooting, Worley said. Nine remained hospitalised on Sunday afternoon.
An 18-year-old woman was found dead at the scene and a 20-year-old man was pronounced dead at a hospital soon after, police said.
“I want those who are responsible to hear me, and hear me very clearly,” Mayor Brandon Scott said at the scene. “We will not stop until we find you, and we will find you. Until then, I hope that every single breath you take, that you think about the lives that you took, think about the lives that you impacted here tonight.”
Scott asked anyone with information to come forward to assist investigators locate the “cowards” who were responsible for the shooting.