Midday shooting haunts neighbors

Residents of nearby McCulloh Homes say they are fed up with violence

A group of women were sitting outside Friday afternoon, enjoying the clear skies and 70-degree weather when the all too familiar sound of gunfire rang out.

A midday shooting near McCulloh Homes in West Baltimore left residents feeling fed up, once again, with Baltimore’s violence. Despite a week without a fatal shooting earlier in the month, there have now been 29 homicides in Baltimore in September.

Police confirmed that the shooting, in the 1200 block of Druid Hill Avenue, was a homicide. Officers responded about 1:30 p.m. and found a male victim with gunshot wounds. He was taken to an area hospital, where he died.

The women, meanwhile, lamented that they no longer feel like they can let their young grandchildren play outside, for fear of stray bullets.

“I can’t enjoy sitting outside my own home,” said one woman, who declined to give her name due to safety concerns. “It could’ve hit me.”

Her 3-year-old granddaughter then came up to her in tears. She wanted to go get some chips from the store — but the neighborhood market was out of reach, situated right behind the police crime scene tape.

Children walking home from Furman L. Templeton Elementary School — about a fifth of a mile away — maneuvered around the yellow barrier. A young girl with a sparkly backpack wondered aloud what the detectives were doing there.

Homicide detectives ask anyone with information about the incident to call 410-396-2100 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7Lockup. People can also text tips to 443-902-4824.