Feud Erupts in Gunfire, Wounding 9 Under Age 18

Louisiana sheriff says witnesses aren't cooperating with investigation
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Apr 19, 2021 6:48 PM CDT
Feud Erupts in Gunfire, Wounding 9 Under Age 18
A St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff's Office detective investigates the scene of a shooting Sunday.   (Brett Duke/The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate via AP)

Nine people under 18 were injured, and two of them remained in the hospital Monday following a weekend shooting at a 12-year-old's birthday party in Louisiana that was rooted in an ongoing feud, authorities said. Eight of the victims of the Saturday night shooting were boys, and all were between the ages of 12 and 17, the AP reports. A 14-year-old boy who was shot in the head and a 16-year-old boy shot in the stomach remained hospitalized while the others were treated and released, the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff's Office said. The sheriff's office had said six people were injured but updated the number to nine on Monday. Sheriff Mike Tregre said the investigation has been frustrating as detectives work to make arrests with no help from anyone who was there. "We have not one witness, not one person that saw anything yet," Tregre said.

The shooting happened around 8:30pm Saturday during a birthday party in LaPlace attended by about 60 young people. Tregre said two groups of boys with an ongoing feud met at the house and began arguing. Several shots were fired, and more than one weapon was used, Tregre said. The others injured were a 17-year-old boy with a gunshot wound to his arm, a 16-year-old boy with a graze wound to his side, a 15-year-old boy with a graze wound to his ankle, a 15-year-old boy with a gunshot wound to his foot, a 14-year-old boy with a gunshot wound to his leg, a 13-year-old boy with a gunshot wound to his leg, and a 12-year-old girl with gunshot wounds in both legs. Tregre said his office has received tips but no one has made a formal statement. He said the investigation will continue. "Somebody's got to come forward," he said. "This cannot just go like this."

(More gun violence stories.)

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