5 victims – including child – reported in Midland Ave. shooting in Syracuse

Syracuse, N.Y. –Five people, including a child, have been shot on Midland Avenue Thursday night, according to Syracuse police

Syracuse police shortly after 11 p.m. said that five people including an 8-year-old girl were injured in the shooting at 1315-17 Midland Ave. Police expect victims will survive.

The Syracuse firefighters union and a witness originally reported seven victims including some children were involved.

Police responded to the call at 9:01 p.m., dispatch logs show.

Witnesses said they saw two or three possible shooters. One witness reported at least 10 shots near the house.

As a woman talked to a reporter, she counted off how many victims she knew.

“My daughter, my nephew, my friend, my niece and my other niece,” she said, crying.

People had gathered at the house to mark the death of Richard Harris, who died in hospice care of pancreatic cancer, neighbors said.

Tammy Jamison said she was gathered for the memorial when gunshots suddenly broke out.

She didn’t see the shooter or shooters but said it was not a drive-by shooting. She heard at least 15 gunshots and tried to take cover inside.

Jamison said the people who had gathered, about 50 of them, ran inside the home for cover.

“When the shooting started I ducked,” she said. “What would you do?”

Multiple ambulance crews were called to the scene to take victims to Upstate University Hospital, according to dispatchers. Some left with a police escort by 9:15 p.m.

Syracuse police said they responded to several calls to the 911 center reporting that more than one person was possibly injured.

Upon arrival, officers observed a large crowd of people and located several people who had been shot, police said. Officers at the scene requested additional ambulances and officers respond to the scene.

The injured were transported to Upstate University Hospital,
police said.

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh and Syracuse Police Chief Frank Fowler were on the scene after 10 p.m.

The home where the shooting occurred, 1315-17 Midland Ave., is the home where Rashaad Walker Jr.’s family lived, according to witnesses and family members.

Walker, 20-months-old, was fatally shot on the afternoon of Nov. 28, 2010 in the 300 block of Coolidge Avenue.

The toddler was sitting in a car seat in a parked minivan when Saquan Evans, a reputed member of the Bricktown gang, opened fire into the vehicle in what authorities contended was an attempt to kill the child’s father, a reputed member of the rival 110 gang.

Evans was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for second-degree murder plus an additional 15 years for second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Outside the home is a 6-foot-tall sign with the boy’s photo. On Thursday night, as police roamed around seeking witnesses, candles in front of it were lit.

This is a breaking news story. We are updating as new information becomes available.