A 12-year-old girl attending a graduation party was one of three people killed in a dozen shooting incidents across the weekend in New Orleans, police have said.
The department’s police chief, Shaun Ferguson, said at a press conference on Monday that the city in Louisiana had seen as many as 12 shooting incidents over the weekend.
“Three resulted in fatalities and we had as many as 13 non-fatal victims,” Mr Ferguson said, adding that out of the dozen which occurred the department had so far made three arrests.
“We had a very active weekend,” he explained during the conference. The police chief noted that an officer-involved shooting had also occurred in the early hours of Monday.
"It's very sad, it's very tragic," Mr Ferguson said of the graduation-party shooting. "Our citizens are celebrating an accomplishment, a significant accomplishment.”
He explained that the 12-year-old girl had been attending a graduation party when individuals fired upon attendees. Three individuals were shot during the incident.
Two others, including an 18-year-old and a 19-year-old, suffered “non-fatal wounds” and were treated at the local hospital, Mr Ferguson said.
The young girl was said to have been transported to a hospital with gunshot wounds and was later pronounced dead.
CNN reported that the 19-year-old was in critical condition on Monday and that a suspect and motive have yet to be identified.
The Independent has contacted the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) for more information regarding the graduation party shooting.
Speaking of the officer-involved shooting, Mr Ferguson said it took place in the early morning after officers responded to a “domestic disturbance”.
“Upon their arrival at the residence they were immediately fired upon by an individual within that residence,” Mr Ferguson said, adding that officers then returned fire.
A male suspect suffered a shot to the leg but managed to flee the scene. A 25-year-old woman sustained a gunshot wound to the stomach and is being treated in hospital.
Mr Ferguson said that, as of now, police believe the woman was injured by the shooter and the suspect was injured by the police officers.
Police later located the suspect with the gunshot wound. He was treated at a hospital and charged with attempted second-degree murder among other charges, police said.
Two officers have been placed on administrative leave following the incident.
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