America marks July 4 – with a string of mass shootings

IIt was July 4th this week as the nation celebrated its independence and commemorated the day the United States of America was founded.

Across the country, families, friends and communities gathered for parties. Many saw spectacular fireworks.

And several families lost loved ones to gun violence as a series of July Fourth celebrations became the scene of the latest mass shooting that has rocked the country.

According to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA), at least 16 mass shootings occurred in the United States during the long holiday weekend from Friday evening through Wednesday morning.

The shootings spanned every corner of the country, from Texas to Washington DC to Illinois and beyond, killing at least 15 and injuring another 94.

The weekend of shootings coincided with the one-year anniversary of the horrific mass shooting in which a gunman killed seven people at an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, Illinois.

President Joe Biden responded to the latest bout of gun violence by again urging Congress to take action with sane gun control reform.

Here are just a few of the bank holiday weekend shoots:

Two dead, 28 injured in Baltimore block party shooting

A block party in Baltimore went into a bloodbath over the weekend of July 4th when at least two gunmen opened fire on partygoers, killing two and injuring 28 others.

The mass shooting occurred in the early hours of Sunday morning in the Brooklyn Homes neighborhood of south Baltimore as hundreds gathered for the annual community celebration.

When officers got to the scene where the community had held its annual Brooklyn Day block party, they found 30 victims suffered from gunshot wounds.

Aaliyah Gonzalez, 18, was pronounced dead at the scene, nine victims were taken to local hospitals and 20 were taken to area hospitals across the region. Kylis Fagbemi, 20, died in hospital from his injuries.

Of the 28 surviving victims, 14 were minors.

Baltimore Police said they believe there were at least two gunmen in the attack, but had made no arrests as of Wednesday.

“Accidental, premeditated” mass shooting in Philadelphia

Five victims were killed on the eve of July 4th when a gunman wearing a ski mask and bulletproof vest roamed several blocks in the Kingsessing neighborhood and gunned down victims.

The shooting happened around 8:30 p.m. Monday when suspected gunman Kimbrady Carriker — armed with an AR-15 rifle and 9mm pistol — opened fire in the southwest neighborhood of Philadelphia.

“On what was supposed to be a beautiful summer evening, this armed and armored individual wreaked havoc, seemingly indiscriminately firing a rifle at his victims,” ​​Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said in a news conference on Tuesday.

In addition to the firearms and body armor, the shooter also used a scanner to track the response of police and emergency services.

Officers responded to the scene while the suspect was still “actively shooting,” and an arrest was made.

A total of five people were killed in the attack: Ralph Moralis, 59; Lashyd Merritt, 20; Dymir Stanton, 29; Daujan Brown, 15; and Joseph Wamah Jr., 31. Two children – ages two and 13 – were also shot in the leg but are in stable condition. The two-year-old’s twin and a 33-year-old woman were also injured by glass splinters from the shooting.

Carricker was charged with murder on Wednesday and is being held without bail.

Fort Worth’s ComoFest ends with three dead and nine injured

Hundreds of people gathered in Fort Worth on Monday night for the neighborhood’s annual ComoFest.

Just after midnight — and not long after the event ended — at least one person in the crowd opened fire.

Sources told ABC11 that the shooting began with an argument that quickly escalated to gunfire, but it remains unclear if the shooting was gang-related.

At least eleven people were shot dead, three of whom died from their injuries.

Two of the three victims killed were identified as Cynthia Santos, 22, and Paul Willis, 18.

As of Wednesday, no arrests had been made and the identity of the shooter or shooters remains unknown.

It was just one of four shootings in Fort Worth on the eve of July 4 that killed or injured a total of 17 people across the city.

The block party in Louisiana claims three dead and six injured

A block party in Louisiana ended in tragedy on July 4 when a mass shooting killed three and wounded six.

Shreveport Police said locals were celebrating the holiday with a block party on Pearl Avenue Tuesday night when gunfire erupted.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found two people dead and others with gunshot wounds. A third victim died in hospital.

At least six other people were injured, the extent of their injuries is unknown.

It is currently unclear how many shooters there were and what led to the shooting.

Nine, including children, were shot dead in a drive-by shooting in DC

Nine people, including two children, were injured in a “targeted” shooting from a passing car in Washington DC as the nation’s capital celebrated July 4th.

The DC Metropolitan Police Department said residents were enjoying the Independence Day celebrations on Meade Street in the city’s northeast when someone in a dark-colored SUV opened fire on them around 1 a.m. ET.

Assistant Chief Leslie Parsons said in an early morning news conference that the dark-colored SUV was driving through the block when it suddenly “stopped and fired shots towards some of our local residents who were outside celebrating the Fourth of July.” .

Nine people were injured in the shooting, all with non-life-threatening injuries. Two children, aged just nine and 17, were among the victims.

Even before the investigation, the investigators assume that the shooting was a targeted attack and are looking for the dark SUV.