Eight children, including a baby, killed in shooting in Louisiana
by Matt Delaney · The Washington TimesLouisiana authorities said a father gunned down eight children, including a baby, in a mass shooting Sunday morning before police fatally shot the suspect.
Shreveport police said the victims ranged in age from 1 to 14 years old, with two women romantically involved with the suspect and a teenager also injured in the gunfire that erupted in three separate homes.
The two wounded women are in critical condition, officials said, while the teenager suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Seven of the eight minors killed were children of the male suspect, Shamar Elkins, police said. Officials added that Wilkins was married to one of the women who was shot and was dating the other.
“This is a tragic situation. Maybe the worst tragic situation we’ve ever had,” Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux said.
Authorities said the attack started as a domestic disturbance call around 6 a.m. when Wilkins first shot one of the women on the street near one of the homes.
The suspect then shot and killed seven children inside a home close by, police said. The eighth victim was mortally wounded on top of a roof as they tried to run away from the carnage.
“I just don’t know what to say, you know? My heart is just taken aback. I just cannot begin to imagine how such an event can occur,” Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said.
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Authorities said Elkins carjacked a driver near the intersection of Linwood Avenue and West 79th Street and led police on a chase to Bossier Parish. He was shot and killed while trying to make his escape.
As of now, police said Elkins is the only suspect in the rampage.
“We’re praying for everyone affected. We’re deeply grateful to the law enforcement officers and first responders working tirelessly on the scene,” Gov. Jeff Landry wrote Sunday on social media.
Shreveport Councilman Grayson Boucher said 30% of killings in the city are domestic in nature.
“Now that number has gone up,” he said at a news conference Sunday. “We’ve more than doubled our homicide rate in the city of Shreveport because of one act of domestic violence.”
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Correction: An earlier version of this article misreported the name of the suspect in the shooting.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.