11-year-old shot on West Baltimore playground during drive-by shooting, police say

An 11-year-old was shot while playing on his school’s playground in West Baltimore Wednesday night during an apparent drive-by shooting targeting a man who was also struck by gunfire, Baltimore Police said.

The boy was taken to a hospital after being shot in the abdomen but is believed to be in stable condition, Police Commissioner Richard Worley told reporters from the scene in the Upton neighborhood.

“Two cowards” pulled up in a vehicle and opened fire on a playground near the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and Dolphin Street, Worley said. During “indiscriminate gunfire,” the shooters struck the boy and a 26-year-old man who police believe they were targeting.

Standing beside Worley, Mayor Brandon Scott denounced the shooting, describing it as evil.

“Our thoughts and our prayers are with both victims, especially the young child,” Scott said. “What we have here is another case of weak-ass men who cannot solve their dispute without gunfire.”

Worley said officers received a call around 7:40 p.m. reporting a shooting near the intersection, which includes an elementary school, church, recreation center and convenience store.

When officers arrived, they found two people who had been shot — the boy and the man, who are not believed to be related, Worley said. The adult, like the boy, was hospitalized and is believed to be in stable condition.

Worley did not say where the 26-year-old was shot or how many rounds were fired, but he said one of the shooters used a rifle.

The commissioner said police were withholding a description of the suspect vehicle.

Scott added a call to action and a promise of accountability.

“Someone knows who did this. If you know who they are, if that’s your son, tell them what’s the only thing left to keep their dignity and turn themselves in,” Scott said. “If you are helping these people hide, we will come for you.”

Police cordoned off the area between McCulloh Homes and Furman L. Templeton Elementary School with yellow crime scene tape. Officers placed more than a dozen orange evidence cones at the intersection near Robert C. Marshall Recreation Center.

Baltimore City Public School officials confirmed the boy was a student at Furman L. Templeton Elementary School, but they did not provide his name. In a letter to families, school principal Ladaisha Ballard, confirmed the incident happened after school hours on the school playground. Ballard said the safety, health and wellbeing of their students remains a top priority.

“Our thoughts are with our student, their family, and all those affected during this difficult time,” Ballard said in the letter. “City Schools staff and support resources will be available for students and staff who may need assistance processing this incident.”

“We cannot allow people to be shooting at babies and just think it’s gonna be OK for them to go home and sleep at night,” Scott said. “I hope they don’t get a lick of sleep tonight. I hope they’re sick of themselves.”

Hours earlier, a shooting about 2 miles away in the Mondawmin neighborhood left a man injured.

Around 4 p.m., officers assigned to the Police Department’s Western District station went to a residence in the 2000 block of North Bentalou Street in response to reports of a shooting, police said in a news release.

Once there, officers learned that someone had been taken to a hospital by family members, police said. Officers went to the hospital and found a 23-year-old being treated for what police described as non-life-threatening gunshot wounds to his arm.

Police arrested Michael Thornton, 56, of Baltimore County, at the scene after a brief foot chase. He’s been charged with attempted first-degree murder and handgun violations, police said.

Police also said an officer suffered a “minor injury to his hand” during the encounter.

The department encouraged anyone with information about the earlier shooting to call Western District detectives at 410-396-2477.

This story has been updated.