One of the two women wounded in a New Orleans East shooting on Tuesday is the niece of a New Orleans city councilman.
According to our partners at NOLA.com, councilman Oliver Thomas announced on his radio show Wednesday that his niece was one of the victims in that shooting on Chef Menteur Highway near Plum Orchard Road.
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"Two young girls were shot up with over 50 bullets yesterday. One died," Thomas reportedly said before pausing to fight back tears and to collect himself. "Fortunately, my niece didn't. Fortunately, she can still fight for her life."
Thomas said his niece was shot twice in the head while she was inside a car outside a tire shop. According to NOLA.com's report, witnesses said more than 40 rounds were shot into the car.
Police have not yet identified the woman who died in that shooting. Police also have not released any information about a potential suspect.
Thomas, however, gave some details about the victims and the possible suspects.
"So when four young me jump out of a car at 3:30 and shoot up a car with two young women in it, and my niece was driving her boyfriend's car . . . " Thomas said before pausing again. "She didn't listen. She didn't date the right boys or the right young men. She didn't make all the right choices. But her friend didn't deserve to die, and she doesn't deserve a bullet in her head and her face. Nobody deserves that."
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This shooting is one of three the NOPD worked in a 12-hour span. A woman was wounded Tuesday night in a Central City shooting. An early-morning shooting at a Tremé tire shop left one man dead.
All of this comes as the city has been classified as the murder capital of America, with more killings per capita than anywhere else. The Metro Crime Commission says homicides are up 44 percent compared to last year, 75 percent over 2020, and 142 percent higher than in 2019.
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