'My Baby': 7-Month-Old Girl Shot, Killed In Ohio, Father Grazed

TOLEDO, OH — A baby is dead and her father was wounded in a shooting in Toledo, police said.

Jeremiah Hughes, 20, was driving with his 7-month-old daughter, Desire, in the car around 10 p.m. Wednesday near Hillcrest Avenue and Jackman Road when occupants of another vehicle opened fire, police said.

The baby suffered at least one gunshot wound and was taken to a hospital, where she died, police said. Desire was in a rear passenger seat when she was shot.

Hughes told the Toledo Blade on Thursday he was a happy father and that his daughter was going to change his life. In May 2021, his 22-year-old brother Marcus Hughes Jr. was shot and killed during an argument.

“That was the one that was gonna change my life. That’s why I’m so sick, I don’t even know what to do," he told the newspaper.

He later added: “My baby … they really took that girl from me.”

Her father was grazed by a bullet and was taken to a hospital for treatment. He has since been released.

Police did not say if they had any suspects, though Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz told the Blade the shooting was likely drug- or gang-related.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers.