5-year-old shot, injured at rec center in Southeast DC

WASHINGTON — A 5-year-old was hospitalized early Thursday after being shot at a rec center in Southeast D.C., according to police.

Officers with the Metropolitan Police Department responded to Barry Farm Rec Center, located on Sumner Road Southeast, around midnight after a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, they found a 5-year-old girl on a basketball court with a gunshot wound to the lower extremities.

Police say her injuries are considered non-life-threatening, but she was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

The police department has informed WUSA9 that she was certainly not the intended target of the shooting. They are now looking for a black Dodge Charger in connection to the incident.

This incident is not the first time that a young child or juvenile was shot at a rec center in the District. In February, a teenage boy was found with a gunshot wound outside the Raymond Recreation Center, and in March, a 15-year-old boy was shot outside the Turkey Thicket Rec Center in Northeast.  

D.C. community members have raised concerns over youth safety when it comes to this alarming trend. In response, District officials say they plan to continue working on this issue by patrolling high crime areas in efforts to keep neighborhoods safe.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the police at 202-727-9099. Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by sending a text message to 50411.