WASHINGTON — Three people were shot in northwest Washington, D.C. on Friday afternoon with the suspect or suspects still at large, Metropolitan Police said.
The victims, two adults and one minor, were in stable condition, said Assistant Police Chief Stuart Emerman at a news conference with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. All three are being treated at hospitals nearby, he said.
The shootings come as multiple U.S. cities grapple with spiking concerns about violence and crime.
Earlier this month, residents and commuters in New York City were rocked by a chaotic morning-rush-hour shooting on a subway train in Brooklyn. And in March, police arrested a suspect in a string of shootings of homeless men in Washington and New York.
Authorities responded to the “active threat” late afternoon Friday in a neighborhood close to Howard University’s law school, the University of the District of Columbia and two local private schools. Some of the schools went into lock down and police advised residents to shelter in place.
“At this time our units are currently in the area of Connecticut and Van Ness conducting a search for a suspect or suspects,” Emerman said. “At this point we do not have any suspects in custody.”
Local D.C. officers were assisted by the U.S. Park Police, the U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division, the University of the District of Columbia Police, FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, he said.
“We have three of our residents who have been injured and we are praying for their health and well-being,” said Bowser. “We understand two are in stable condition and that there was a minor gunshot wound to a child, and so we’re very focused on that.”
Bowser, who is running for reelection to a third term with a Democratic mayoral primary in June, has faced pressure from voters about violent crime, carjackings and homeless encampments in the District during the pandemic.
