Police Plead For Community Help Following 3 Juvenile Shootings

CHARLOTTE, NC — Hours after three juveniles were shot and left injured in two northwest Charlotte shootings Tuesday, police are pleading with residents, along with community and faith leaders to help police with information that would hold suspects accountable.

"CMPD cannot do this job alone. We've got to have help. That help has to come from the community," said CMPD Maj. Brian Foley in a press conference Wednesday morning.

Tuesday afternoon, two teenage boys were targeted in a drive-by shooting in a northwest Charlotte street. Hours later and about a mile away, a 7-year-old girl was struck by stray gunfire, caught in the crossfire of a shooting in the parking lot of an apartment complex.

By Wednesday morning, CMPD said they anticipated identifying and charging suspects in the cases "in the near future."

The cases underscore growing gun crime in Charlotte. As of Wednesday, CMPD has investigated 101 gunshot wound cases, representing a 9 percent increase in shootings over this time last year, Foley said.

SEE ALSO: Charlotte Police Form New Unit In Response To Gun Crime Surge

Shortly after 3 p.m. Tuesday, two teenage boys were shot while outside a convenience store at 4400 Hovis Road.

"They were targeted by an individual in an automobile, who fired at them." Foley said. The boys then ran to a nearby house, where they received medical attention, and police responded, he said.

Less than four hours later, a girl was shot and left with serious injuries in the 1000 block of Marble Street when, according to a police account, suspects were shooting at each other in a parking lot of an apartment complex.

"We had a 7-year-old girl who was struck by gunfire and all she was doing was playing in her own neighborhood," Foley said, who added that while ages of juvenile victims are not typically released, her age was significant.

"That has got to resonate with the public," he said. "The fact that children are getting struck by gunfire — I just don't understand why we don't get the public comment and outcry about this kind of activity. It's unacceptable."

Wednesday morning, the girl and the two teenage boys were all listed as in stable condition, Foley said.

The shootings prompted a swift reaction from CMPD, Foley said, with more than 50 patrol officers and investigators on the ground in the search for leads in the northwest Charlotte neighborhood until about 3 a.m.

"We had community members who did speak with us, but they were few," Foley said.

Police do believe the cases are connected, due to geography and other evidence, he said.

"I was there, and I can tell you I saw a lot of community members out in their driveways, on the street, looking," he said. "I know that there are people in that community who know what happened and that who know who did it, yet they do not come forward to talk to police," he said.

SEE ALSO:

• 7-Year-Old Girl Caught In Crossfire Of Charlotte Shooting: CMPD
• Need Help Paying A Heating Bill? One Day Left To Apply For Grant
  
• NC Rolls Out Home COVID-19 Testing Kit Program For Those In Need