ST. LOUIS — A 6-year-old boy was fatally shot Saturday afternoon and his 9-year-old sister was injured when a gunman opened fire on a car they were riding in with their mother and another sibling, police said.
The shooting happened around 1:45 p.m. near North Euclid and Highland avenues in the city's Kingsway East neighborhood.
St. Louis police said a man drove the children and their mother to St. Louis Children's Hospital, where the 6-year-old boy, who police have identified as David Birchfield III, was pronounced dead.
The 9-year-old girl is listed in critical condition. Her 7-year-old sibling was not injured. Their mother was injured by shattered glass, police said.
Police said the two adults were in a vehicle with the three children when an unknown suspect started shooting at them.
"I heard about five to six shots. That’s sad because they never had a chance to live their life. They never had a chance to do anything with their life because someone was acting crazy," said a neighbor who didn't want to be identified.
At the hospital, more than an hour after the shooting, a silver Nissan Rouge was surrounded by police tape. A city tow truck later took the vehicle away.
Just last Saturday, a 6-year-old girl was shot in her knee while riding in a car in South St. Louis. That shooting happened just outside a couple's home. As of Saturday night, police were still looking for three suspects in that shooting
So far this year, fourteen children have been shot in St. Louis, two of the young victims died.
Anyone with information is asked to call St. Louis police at 314-444-5371 or CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.
James Clark with Better Family Life says on Monday, they are holding a community march for peace, called Peace Be Still. One will be in St. Louis at Martin Luther King Drive and Hamilton starting at 6. The other will be in East St. Louis, starting at City Hall and ending at St. Luke's Church.
"We have to engage neighborhoods and scale up outreach efforts we know exactly where the crime is taking place. We've got to able to talk to our children, our nephews, our family members about engaging in violence," Clark adds.
This is a developing story and will be updated as 5 On Your Side receives more information.
Editors note: Police initially said the children's mother had been shot, but after further investigation found that she had not been.
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