Two more teenagers were shot in Southwest D.C. Sunday near the King-Greenleaf Recreation Center, bringing the total number of minor victims of gun violence since Friday to five.
First responders were called to the 1200 block of 1st Street SW at N Street for reports of a shooting at around 3:23 p.m., D.C. police said.
At the scene officers found the victims, two boys between 15 and 17 years old, conscious and breathing. They were taken to an area trauma center, police said.
The extent of their injuries is not known. Authorities said they're searching for a red or maroon Toyota Rav4.
A woman who has lived in the neighborhood for more than 10 years said she rushed to the rec center to make sure her grandson, who went there to play basketball, was OK.
"My heart is just beating really hard," the woman, who did not want to be identified, said. “It’s sad. I don’t know what’s going on with our people, man.”
This is the second shooting at the rec center in the past month. The previous time, a window was shattered.
“I think there’s some irony that we have a voting location behind us, but we don’t see our mayor here tonight, we don’t see our city council people here, and we’re real fed up. I understand that they’re telling us crime is down, but it sure doesn’t feel like that down here in Southwest,” resident Sam Harper said.
D.C. police crime data confirms that violent crime is down by 5% compared to this time last year, but Harper said more needs to be done.
"It breaks your heart, and it’s a tragedy that’s going on around us," he said.
In the past four weeks, News4 has reported on at least 15 different teens being shot in the District.
On Saturday, two teenagers were shot in Northwest D.C. and at least one of them was taken to the hospital. The gunfire erupted down the street from where 15-year-old Makai Green was killed on Friday near the Washington Convention Center.
