2 people are dead and 28 people were injured in mass shooting at a Baltimore block party, officials say
An 18-year-old woman and a 20-year-old man were killed and 28 others injured in a mass shooting at a Baltimore block party, officials said.
Nine people were transported from the scene to hospitals and 20 people walked into hospitals in the area. Three of the injured are in critical condition, according to a police statement.
The 18-year-old was pronounced dead on the scene and the 20-year-old was pronounced dead at a hospital, police said.
The incident was yet another celebration turned fatal at the hands of gunman. Just two days into the month, it is one of three mass shootings in July and one of 338 mass shootings in the US in 2023, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
Twelve patients are being treated at the University of Maryland Medical Center’s trauma center and four are being treated in its pediatric emergency department, the medical system’s spokesman Michael Schwartzberg said in an email statement.
Two patients in fair condition are being treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital, an emailed statement from hospital spokesperson Cassidy Davis said.
Police received multiple calls after 12:30 a.m., and arrived to find one woman dead and another nine people suffering from gunshot wounds, according to Baltimore Police Acting Commissioner Richard Worley.
There is no information on suspects or a motive at this time, but investigators are “working an extensive crime scene,” Worley said.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott described the incident as a “reckless, cowardly act that happened here and that has permanently altered many lives and cost two people their lives.”
Scott said the block party was in celebration of Baltimore’s Brooklyn neighborhood, which he described as a working-class neighborhood filled with immense pride.
“It’s an event that happens in Brooklyn every year,” he told CNN’s Victor Blackwell and Amara Walker. “Folks were out there having a celebration and then at some point, gunshots rang out and folks of course were trying to get away, get out of there.”
Scott’s office is distributing letters offeringfor residents in the Brooklyn Homes area, which he described as a public housing facility.
“It is a neighborhood that has had its troubles, but a neighborhood that has seen some folks in that community really determined to see it be successful and see things turn around,” he added.
Earlier, Scott said the tragedy “highlights the impacts and the need to deal with the overproliferation of illegal guns on our streets and the ability for those who should not have them to get their hands on them.”
Scott and police officials urged anyone with information to come forward and help find those responsible. The mayor also said he is mobilizing every resource available to assist the investigation.
His message to the perpetrator was simple: “We will not stop until we find you – and we will find you.”
“Until then, I hope with every single breath that you take that you think about the lives that you took and you think about the lives that you impacted here tonight,” he added.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said his administration is in touch with local officials and ready to provide assistance.
“Maryland has had enough of watching gun violence continue to ravage our state and our nation,” Moore said in a statement. “The fact that these horrific shootings continue to take place is abominable. We as a state will continue to do everything we can to prevent senseless acts of violence like the one we saw last night.”
The National Rifle Association sued Moore after he signed the Gun Safety Act of 2023 and other gun safety measures into law in May, court documents show.
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