Police said that when an after-school program was letting participants out, seven individuals, including five teenagers, a 2-year-old, and the mother of two of the victims, were shot in Philadelphia’s Strawberry Mansion area on February 23. At about six o’clock in the evening, gunfire broke out near the schoolyard of James G. Blaine High School. More than 30 shots were fired.
Three men are wanted by police in connection with the incident. They allegedly came up in a car and started shooting. Police are also reportedly looking for a gray, four-door 2011–2016 Hyundai Elantra with an unidentified Pennsylvania license plate.
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw stated during a press conference that they don’t think all of the injured people were the intended targets. Officer Outlaw added that shootings like this frequently occur in retaliation for past incidents.
Authorities reported that a 15-year-old boy was shot twice in the right side of his body and twice in the chest. He was admitted to Temple University Hospital in serious condition.
Two 16-year-old boys were shot. One was wounded in the left arm while the other was struck in the right arm and left thigh, and a 13-year-old child was shot in the left hand. Another teenager, 17, had his left thigh grazed. They were all admitted to nearby hospitals in stable condition.
According to the Philadelphia School District, the five kids were attending an after-school program at the Blaine School.
Philadelphia Federation of Teachers President Jerry Jordan said that gun violence continues to traumatize the community. He added that it should be shocking to anyone that six people, including a toddler and four teenagers, were shot outside the school as a school program was letting kids out for the day.
