JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 4-year-old girl and her mother sitting in an SUV in a driveway were wounded late Wednesday night when someone driving by opened fire.
Another woman in the SUV, who is related to the mom and little girl, wasn’t hurt, police said.
It’s all too much for the child’s aunt, who called the violence “out of control.”
“Who shoots a 4-year-old? Who shoots anyone, but really, who shoots a 4-year-old? Multiple times?” Bernadette Fields told News4JAX. “I just don’t know what to do. I’ve never seen it at this level, where so many children -- like I said, my niece is 4. They have no respect for children, I honestly believe, because they are not being caught.”
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According to police, the child and the two women were sitting in the SUV outside a home on Oaklawn Road in the Oak Brook subdivision on the Northside around 11:30 p.m. when a light-colored SUV drove by and someone inside started shooting toward the home.
Three bullet holes could be seen along the driver’s side door and another bullet hole was on the back door. A shattered window also left glass scattered outside the SUV.
Fields said her sister and her niece were struck multiple times -- with the child suffering a graze wound over her eye.
“My sister was shot in the back. This is a working-class community. She works. She does not have any enemies. These people have no respect for anyone,” Fields said. “They are shooting kids and they do not care and they are getting away with it.”
Police said the injuries were not life-threatening and the two were taken to hospitals for treatment. Fields said Thursday morning that the little girl “is not well.”
Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Lt. Chris Stephens said police do not have any information on the shooter, but they are interviewing both women who were in the car, along with other family members who were in the house during the shooting.
“Obviously, any shooting is unfortunate, but especially when young children are involved -- they are innocent,” Stephens said. “It’s always heartbreaking.”
Investigators are also looking for any surveillance video in the area and ask anyone with information on the shooting to reach out to JSO by phone at 904-630-0500, by email at jsocrimetips@jaxsheriff.org, or through CrimeStoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.
Fields, a certified guidance counselor, said her family is devastated and doesn’t know what to do.
“This is a major issue. When it comes so close to home, it is just devastating, and it makes you just want to really leave Jacksonville,” Fields said. “I deal with a lot of kids with trauma. I have worked in the community a lot. I just don’t understand why there is so much gun violence in the city, and why nothing is being done to decrease it.”
In January 2016, toddler Aiden McClendon was in the backseat of a car parked in a driveway when it was hit by gunfire. He died from his injuries. Two documented gang members were convicted and sentenced to life in prison.