MILWAUKEE — The road rage shooting death of a 3-year-old girl sparked a trauma that is rippling throughout the community.
Milwaukee Police said a near crash between two cars at 42nd and Concordia Saturday morning resulted with one of the drivers shooting at the other. Family members said Brooklyn Harris, who just celebrated her 3rd birthday, was killed. She was in a car with her mom and siblings.
"I couldn’t Believe what I was seeing that this was happening in broad daylight," said Sharon Diggs who lives near the intersection.
Diggs said she was watering her plants when she heard gunshots. She thought it was a car backfiring. When Diggs saw the shooting she ran inside her home.
"You just didn’t know where those bullets were going to go so it was just really really traumatic," said Diggs.
Days later Diggs was traumatized by not just what she saw, but knowing an innocent girl was killed. The pain can be felt by neighbors and police.
According to Milwaukee Police, 23 kids (17 years old and younger) survived gun violence between January 1 - July 14, 2018. MPD reported another 23 kids survived gun violence in that same time frame in 2019.
However, in the same time frame two minors died from a gun-related homicide in 2018, and one died in 2019.
"Whenever a child is impacted by senseless gun violence it’s something that I think shakes all of us. It has to shake us beyond outrage. It has to shake us to action. It has to shake us to being proactive. It has to shake us to being better neighbors, looking out for each other," said Reggie Moore, Director the City of Milwaukee Health Department's Office of Violence Prevention.
Moore said they're office has been offering counseling and support services to Brooklyn's family and members of the community traumatized by the road rage shooting.
Since Brooklyn's killing, there has been a renewed call for people to unite and help police keep the city safe.
A gofundme has been created to help the family with funeral costs.
