One teenager is dead and two other young man were injured in a shooting in New Haven over the weekend.
As police search for the shooter, they said evidence leads them to believe this was not a random shooting and that the victims were instead targeted.
Police said they received a report of a double shooting on Exchange Street, near Blatchley Avenue, around 12:10 a.m. on Sunday and learned someone had opened fire into the white VW hatchback they were in.
Later police would learn that there were actually three victims went a 19-year-old showed up at Bridgeport Hospital to be treated for a gunshot wound.
When police responded to the shooting scene, they detemined that Justin Compress, 20, and a 16-year-old, who family identified as Jericho Scott, 16, had been shot.
Compress was shot multiple times in the shoulder, hand and wrist and has since been released from the hospital.
Scott was pronounced dead at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
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"Today is a sad day for the New Haven Public School community as we mourn the loss of one our students who was shot and killed overnight. Each child lost to gun violence leaves an indelible mark on our community and is a heart-wrenching reminder of our urgent need to stop the killings. Our thoughts and prayers are with this child’s family, his friends and with the entire school district community. We will provide grief counseling and other supports to assist our students and staff as they return to school on Monday," New Haven Superintendent of Schools Garth Harries said in a statement.
Police identified the third victim as Tyrese Little, 19, of New Haven, and said he'd been the victim of a shooting last Sept. 6 at Compress' home.
When police started investigating this weekend's shooting, Little claimed he’d been shot in Milford, but police determiine he lied and detectives learned he was shot on Exchange Street during the same incident, police said.
Authorities said evidence suggests the recent crime was not random and that the group was targeted.
They also said originally received reports of a black or dark-colored 4-door car racing toward James Street after the shooing have not been supported by video surveillance.
If the shooter did leave in a vehicle, police believe it was a silver 4-door Lexus or Toyota or a newer model white Nissan, possibly a Sentra.
New Haven resident Scott Dawley expressed sadness upon hearing about the shooting and said "you can't really feel safe."
"He's still young and he had his whole life ahead of him," another resident, Martel Arrington said about the death of the 16-year-old. "....Things like that shouldn't happen to no 16-year-old person."
Exchange Street was littered with evidence markers for much of Sunday morning as officers from New Haven Police Department's Major Crimes Division spent hours going through the crime scene that could point them in the direction of the teen's killer.
Neighbors said that their community has seen it's share of violence over the years and they hope the shooter is found so they can get answers.
"For his parents, the community, his friends, it's a tragedy," Arrington said. "You know, it shouldn't happen like that."
Dawley said it's a "sign of the times" that the community needs to come together.
"We need to start binding together as citizens and tell these kids you know, look out for each other," Dawley said.
The Major Crimes Division and Bureau of Investigations are interviewing witnesses and collecting evidence.
Anyone with information is asked to call New Haven detectives at 203-946-6304.
