Vicious Shooting Kills Two During Detroit Prayer Vigil
The Detroit Police Department said Friday that a shooting during a prayer vigil has left two people dead this week.
Members of a community on Detroit's west side had gathered for a candlelight prayer vigil for a recent victim of violence in the neighborhood when a drive-by shooting, as well as a car crash, took place just before 2 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 12. Authorities confirmed to The Christian Post that the shootout began with gunshots fired inside a home on Patton Street before cars outside returned fire, killing one person inside the home.
Furthermore, Detroit Police Department's Office of Public Information confirmed that there were four non-fatal wounds, one fatal from a vehicle, one critical injury from a vehicle, and two persons of interests involved. However, the investigation is ongoing.
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Other reports indicate that one person died after being ejected from a vehicle that sped away from the crime scene and crashed. Police have identified the victim of the car crash as 33-year-old Kercilla Reed, according to ClickOnDetroit.
Three weapons were recovered by police. Additional details about the crime are scarce, but police say that everyone involved in the shootout knew each other.
"A lot of family members or extended family members have been shot in this," said Detroit Assistance Police Chief Steve Dolunt, who referred to the crime as "senseless and ... stupid."
Police are also examining the cause of the shooting that occurred in a place of mourning.
"Now we're facing two other vigils because you have a young lady here that's dead and another person dead at Patton," he said, according to ClickOnDetroit. "It's senseless and it's stupid, and there's no reason for it."
Meanwhile, local resident Maurice Westfield revealed that the prayer vigil was wrapping up when he heard gunshots outside.
"There was a short intermission and then I heard a different type of gun going off," he told CBS Detroit. "People were screaming and yelling and banging on doors. The shots went off, back and forth, for like five minutes, or even longer. It's a mess but I'm not surprised at all, not in this neighborhood."
