PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Just minutes after a dismissal bell rang at a North Philadephia high school Monday afternoon, three teen boys walking past a neighboring school were shot.
They are among more than a dozen teenage shooting victims within a 72-hour period in the city and 13 since late Friday afternoon, based on initial reports from Philadelphia police.
All three teens shot outside the school Monday were hospitalized. Police said that one of them, 16, was listed in critical condition, while the other victims, 15 and 17 years old, were expected to physically recover.
According to police, the three teens are students at Simon Gratz High School Mastery Charter. Two of them are brothers, while the third is a friend.
They were walking by neighboring Mastery Prep Elementary Charter School near the corner of North 17th Street and West Hunting Park Avenue in the city’s Nicetown-Tioga neighborhood just before 3 p.m. Monday.
Police believe at that time, two people in a burgundy sedan fired about a dozen shots.
It was initially unclear whether the shooters were targeting the three teens.
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“Warm weather, kids hang out. That’s what we should do. That’s what we expect our kids to do. But we also expect them to be safe, and want them to be safe out here,” said Philadelphia Police Capt. John Walker Monday at the crime scene.
"Mastery Charter does a phenomenal job with security, moving kids around and getting them home as best they can. Unfortunately, you have some young knuckleheads [who] fire a gun when it's the dismissal process."
The shootings happened shortly after the schools were dismissed, with kids heading onto buses or getting ready to walk home.
“It’s just sad. It was in front of the elementary school playground. It hits real different,” said Zilla, a neighbor. "It's a quiet neighborhood. There's nothing really bad that usually goes on. It's full of elders."
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In a statement from Mastery Charter Schools, officials said that although the shooting happened off school grounds, three nearby schools were briefly put into lockdown.
As of late Monday afternoon, no one was arrested iafter Monday afternoon's shooting.
Police said they are looking for security footage, and they added that if you have any information, you should contact them.
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Additionally, a 19-year-old man was shot at about 7:10 a.m. Monday near the corner of South 60th and Regent streets in Southwest Philadelphia, according to police. He was placed in critical condition at a local hospital.
The triple shootings come after a violent weekend in Philadelphia, where nine other teenagers were shot in six incidents based on initial reports from police.
Three teens were shot during a festival near Penn’s Landing on Saturday evening at about 9:40 p.m.
Police said that two groups of teens got into an argument that was caught on video. One pulled a gun and fired seven rounds. All three teens were listed in stable condition.
Authorities believe the suspect is a 14 or 15-year-old boy who was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt. Police continued to investigate Monday.
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Police said that at about the same time Saturday night, a pair of 18-year-olds were shot seven times near the corner of South 23rd and Reed streets in the Point Breeze neighborhood. Both victims were placed in critical condition.
Investigators said the male suspect was driving a black Honda SUV and was wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt and black pants.
An 18-year-old teen was among two shot outside of a convenience store near the corner of North 22nd and West Toronto streets in North Philadelphia’s Allegheny West neighborhood at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday morning, police said. The teen and a 21-year-old victim were both hospitalized and listed in stable condition.
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A 17-year-old boy was shot Friday night at about 7:20 p.m. near the corner of North 55th and Master streets in West Philadelphia’s Hestonville neighborhood, according to authorities. He survived the shooting.
Tyeece Lovett, a 21-year-old man from Wilmington, was also shot during that incident and died at a local hospital later that evening, police said.
A 15-year-old boy was shot Friday night at about 7:35 p.m. near the corner of South Salford Street and Larchwood Avenue in West Philadelphia's Cobbs Creek neighborhood, investigators said. The boy was placed in stable condition at a local hospital.
A 19-year-old man was also shot Friday at about 3:30 p.m. near the corner of North 17th Street and West Girard Avenue, according to police. He was hospitalized and listed in stable condition.
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