Community leaders and the family of a 3-year-old girl came together for a vigil Saturday night to remember another innocent life cut short to gun violence in Milwaukee.
Family identifies the victim as Brooklyn Harris, a little girl who had her whole life ahead of her.
Her grandmother, Lasangna Ferguson shares that her grandchild was always smiling.
“She just turned three on the first. She just turned 3-years-old,” Ferguson said.
Police said the 3-year-old was shot and killed around 8:30 a.m. Saturday. She was with her mom and siblings in a car when her mom nearly crashed with another car near 42nd and Concordia. Investigators said the driver of that car then shot at them and a bullet struck the little girl.
Police said a suspect is in custody, but the incident is creating an outcry among local leaders and the community.
“Everyone of you should be just as angry and upset about this as I am," Assistant Police Chief Ray Banks said. "She had her whole life in front of her."
“On a Saturday morning, to have a young child lose their life because some jerk decides that he’s going to use a gun because he’s mad at someone on the streets is just insanity,” Mayor Tom Barrett said.
They’re seeking change and agree it’s going to take more than police to make a difference. It’s going to take the whole community working together.
“This can’t become the norm. Our city’s better than this. We need everybody to understand just how tragic this is,” Banks said.
“These innocent kids should be able to play out here and live their life. It shouldn’t be all this killing going on. It’s always an innocent bystander,” Ferguson said. “I’m praying that they put the guns down.”
This marks the third time in less than two months that a 3-year-old was shot in Milwaukee. The other two survived.
