As police seek suspects in the multiple shootings that killed three people and wounded 11 in a popular Philadelphia entertainment district over the weekend, the city’s chief prosecutor said charges are coming against two people in nonfatal shootings during the melee.
District Attorney Larry Krasner said Monday that at least four guns — three 9mm weapons and one 40-caliber firearm — were involved in Saturday night’s gunfire on South Street in Philadelphia, and it’s possible more firearms were involved. Police said evidence indicated that five guns were involved, two of which were recovered.
Krasner said he went to the scene the morning after what he called “a horrific and a senseless act of violence” and found it “chilling — no less chilling that it happened in more than 10 places around the country over the space of a few days.” He called for the ouster of lawmakers getting donations or high ratings from gun organizations.
Police officers patrolling the area at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday raced to the scene after hearing multiple shots and found several people with gunshot wounds lying on the sidewalk and in the street. Seeing a man on a corner firing a handgun at people about half a block away, one officer opened fire, and police believe that man was struck before he dropped his handgun onto the sidewalk and fled, authorities said.
Police said 34-year-old Gregory Jackson, 27-year-old Alexis Quinn, and a 22-year-old man who was not identified were killed. Investigators believe one of them was involved in “a physical altercation” with another man, and those two began firing at each other, with both struck by gunfire, one wounded and one killed, authorities said.
The other two people killed and a number of wounded, who ranged from age 17 to 69, are believed to have been innocent bystanders, said the city’s police commissioner, Danielle Outlaw, called it “a dark day” for the city. Mayor Jim Kenney called the shooting “beyond devastating.”
South Street is known for its entertainment venues and night life with multiple bars, restaurants and businesses. Surveillance video from local businesses showed scores of people fleeing as the gunfire broke out. Police were seeking images from businesses to try to identify suspects. Police are also investigating several other shootings, one fatal, in the same area or nearby to see whether they might be related, officials said.
