A woman in her 40's died and seven others were injured after a shooting took place outside a McDonald's in downtown Seattle. A 21-year-old man injured in the incident was arrested as one of the suspected shooters, police said on Thursday.
Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins said calls about multiple victims in a shooting was reported at about 5 pm on Wednesday. A forty-something woman died from her injuries and seven others were treated for gunshot wounds, Harborview Medical Center spokeswoman Susan Gregg was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
A 55-year-old woman was upgraded from critical to serious condition while a 32-year-old man and a nine-year old boy were listed in satisfactory condition by the hospital staff, according to reports.
Plymouth Housing, a non-profit working on homeless servicing and housing provider, said the woman who died and the middle-aged injured woman were long-term residents. "As part of our permanent supportive housing model, our buildings become close-knit communities; these women were like family to many," said a statement from the organization.
Armed and dangerous suspects
Videos showed several people open fire outside the McDonald's on Wednesday. Police Chief Carmen Best said the incident was not a random incident and multiple people were involved. "There was a dispute that happened in front of the McDonald's, '," she said.
An injured 21-year-old was arrested for illegal possession of a gun and is being held as a suspected shooter. Best said police were looking for two armed and dangerous suspects: Marquise Latrelle Tolbert and William Ray Tolliver. Records show both the 24-year-old suspects have a long history of arrest records and are reported to have gang connections.
Downtown Seattle's rising gun violence
The incident was the third such shooting reported in downtown Seattle this week. A man was fatally shot in a mall staircase on Tuesday and the police shot a person near the downtown area on Wednesday.
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan on Thursday commented on the rising violence and said, "We will not allow this to be the new normal. We know gun violence is preventable and are taking urgent action."
She said immediate actions such as deploying more patrolling officers on the streets and setting up of mobile police precincts at the shooting scene have taken place.
Nine-year-old girl shot outside Cali elementary school
In another incident, a nine-year-old girl was injured by a stray bullet in the playground outside an elementary school in Oxnard, Southern California, authorities said on Thursday.
Police said the shooting took place outside McAuliffe Elementary School and is believed to be an "isolated incident".
Witnesses said two cars being driven erratically in the area opened fire on each other and later fled. No arrests were made immediately. The girl, who was shot in a "lower extremity", was taken to the hospital in stable condition, and no one else was injured in the incident. "She is in good spirits," Oxnard Police Chief Scott Whitney was quoted as saying.
The school was locked down after the shooting. While no arrests were made, police have a description of the vehicles and believe a semiautomatic handgun was used in the shooting, reported the Ventura Country Star.
