Two teen boys have been arrested in connection with a shooting at a “senior skip day” gathering at a Greenbelt, Maryland, park that left five young people injured earlier this month.
Two teen boys have been arrested in connection with a shooting at a “senior skip day” gathering at a Greenbelt, Maryland, park that left five young people injured earlier this month.
The boys, aged 14 and 16, are charged as adults with attempted first-degree murder and weapons charges, Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy said at a news conference Monday afternoon.
Five teens between the ages of 16 and 18 were shot and injured at Schrom Hills Park on April 19. They were among about 500 high school students who had gathered there that afternoon for an unsanctioned senior skip day event.
All five have since been released from the hospital.
“What happened at this park should never have happened,” Braveboy said. “My heart goes out to the families and those impacted directly by the senseless shootings that occurred here. Our young people deserve a future free from violence.”
Greenbelt Police shared footage of its initial response to the shooting, including the moment shots rang out inside the park.
The nearly minute-long video includes footage from a cruiser at the park, which captures the sound of a series of gunshots fired in quick succession. A large crowd can then be scene running through the parking lot.
There’s also body camera footage that shows a group of officers nearby reacting to the sound of the shots. In that video, several officers can be seen running toward the shots, navigating through the dispersing crowd. The final frames of the video appear to show gunshot victims lying on the sidewalk.
Witnesses helped identify the two teens boys charged in the shooting, and police said the U.S. Marshals Joint Fugitive Task Force took them into custody Monday. One was apprehended in the Bowie area, and the other in the District Heights area, police said.
Authorities are not sharing the identities of either teen, even though they are charged as adults, because the teens will have a waiver hearing during which they could still be waived to the juvenile justice system.
“As with any serious offense, especially those that potentially carry life sentences like attempted first-degree murder, these cases will be taken seriously,” Braveboy said.
Greenbelt Police Chief Rick Bowers said investigators are still trying to determine the motive behind the shooting.
According to Bowers, investigators do not believe the shooting was the result of an exchange of gunfire, but that two individuals were “directly responsible.”
“These events are avoidable and needlessly ruin peoples’ lives, both the victims and the suspects,” Bowers said.
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Thomas Robertson
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