Police: Girl, 3, was unintended target of gang-related shooting in Orange County
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correct the child’s age.
A three-year-old girl is recovering after being shot Sunday night in Orange County while inside a car, authorities confirmed.
Officers with the Santa Ana Police Department responded to CHOC Children’s Hospital in Orange shortly after 8 p.m. in response to the shooting.
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Authorities told KTLA that the adults in the vehicle — later identified as the child’s mother and mother’s boyfriend — rushed the young girl to the hospital in critical condition with a gunshot wound to her back.
After undergoing several surgeries, she is expected to survive, Santa Ana Police Department Officer Natalie Garcia said at a Monday afternoon press conference.
Investigators located a crime scene near East 15th and North Spurgeon streets, Garcia said.
The shooting is believed to be gang-related, Garcia said at a press conference on Monday afternoon, adding that the victim’s mother’s boyfriend, who was seated in the front passenger seat, was likely the intended target.
Investigators at CHOC Children’s Hospital seen gathering evidence after a child was shot while inside a vehicle on Feb. 25, 2024. (OnScene TV) Bullet hole seen in a vehicle where a young child was shot in Orange County Feb. 25, 2024. (OnScene TV) Bullet hole seen in a vehicle where a young child was shot in Orange County Feb. 25, 2024. (OnScene TV) Officers with Santa Ana PD seen setting up a perimeter after a child was shot while inside a car on Feb. 25, 2024. (OnScene TV) Officers with Santa Ana PD seen setting up a perimeter after a child was shot while inside a car on Feb. 25, 2024. (OnScene TV)
Video obtained by KTLA of the vehicle the victim was inside showed at least two bullet holes, one in the trunk of the vehicle and another on a rear side panel.
Garcia said the girl was seated in the back of the car when she was struck.
There were no reports of other injuries.
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The suspect remains outstanding, said Officer Garcia. He was only identified as an adult man. It is believed that he approached the vehicle on foot and fired three rounds before fleeing in an unknown direction.
Anyone with information about this incident was urged to contact the Santa Ana Police Department at 714-245-8665.
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