CINCINNATI -- A 17-year-old was shot blocks from a West End high school Tuesday, just as it was letting out for the day.
The teen, who was shot in the buttocks, was taken to University of Cincinnati Medical Center. He is expected to recover.
He was shot on Linn Street near Wade Street, police said. The location is within walking distance of five schools, including Taft High School, which was letting out for the day when the victim was shot. He ran and collapsed in front of Richie's restaurant.
"That could've been one of my kids just walking to the store or anything, and a bullet could've hit them -- don't no bullet have no eyes," said Sabrina Ferguson. She was waiting to pick up her kids when the shooting happened.
Capt. Lisa Davis said the shooting appears to have stemmed from a drug deal. Officers found several shell casings at the scene, Davis said.
"Whether it’s a homicide or it’s a non-life-threatening, it’s still a shooting. So the callousness that which people shoot is just unheard of. The chief, his primary goal is reducing gun violence and reducing violence in the city. So every shooting is going to be important and has priority in the city, and it certainly has priority here in District One," =Davis said.
Investigators are searching for a red sedan and hope surveillance video may help them track down the shooter, Davis said.
Earlier Tuesday, Police Chief Eliot Isaac detailed the city's increase in gun violence last year: Fatal and non-fatal shootings increased 27.7 percent compared to 2014, according to police department data. More than half of those shootings were related to "group members" (i.e. "gangs"). Isaac will present his crime-reduction plan to City Council in two weeks.
Anyone with information on the West End shooting should call Crimestoppers at 513-352-3040.
