Eight-year-old girl shot dead near high school sports event in St Louis
The victim is the 12th child or teenager to die in gun violence in the Missouri city since April
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An eight-year-old girl has been shot dead close to a high school football event in St Louis, Missouri.
She is the 12th child or teenager killed in gun violence in the city since April, according to the St Louis Post-Dispatch.
Two teenage boys and a woman were also wounded in the latest shooting. One of the boys was shot several times but both are said to be in a stable condition. The woman, who is in her 40s, was shot in the leg and was in a critical but stable condition.
Several people have been detained for questioning.
St Louis police chief John Hayden said: “The little girl wasn't doing anything wrong. She was with family when this occurred. Shots rang out."
He added: "It’s just unfortunate that people aren’t being respectful of others, it’s just hard to deal with.”
Police were already in the area when the shootings occurred after reports of fights at the high school football exhibition.
The girl had been at the event.
The city, which has a population of about 320,000, has suffered a series of fatal shootings of children and teenagers this year.
They include a two-year-old boy who was killed alongside his mother, a boy killed in his backyard while playing with his sisters, and another child killed at a petrol station.
The Post-Dispatch said this week that only one arrest had been made over the killings.
The shootings come against the background of increasing scrutiny of America’s gun laws, following a series of mass shootings in Texas, Ohio and California.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments