1-year-old girl wounded in shooting involving relative, say Columbus police

A 1-year-old girl is in critical condition Wednesday after she was wounded in a shooting near downtown Columbus, police said.

Officers were called about 1 p.m. to a shooting involving a handgun at 636 Sixth Ave. The child had a gunshot wound to her chest area, and first was rushed to a local hospital for emergency treatment before being transferred to one in Atlanta, authorities said.

Officers had the two-story brick complex at Sixth Avenue and 7th Street sealed off with crime-scene tape for much of the afternoon Wednesday as investigators questioned witnesses.

Police Maj. J.D. Hawk said the girl was injured in a shooting “involving a relative of hers,” but detectives with the department’s robbery-assault unit had not determined the exact sequence of events.

So far no charges had been filed, he said.

Editor’s note: Police had reported Wednesday that the girl was 3 years old, but corrected that later, saying she will turn 2 in August.

This story was originally published July 15, 2020 at 5:10 PM.

Tim Chitwood

Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

706-571-8508

Tim Chitwood is from Seale, Alabama, and started as a police beat reporter with the Ledger-Enquirer in 1982. He since has covered Columbus’ serial killings and other homicides, following some from the scene of the crime to trial verdicts and ensuing appeals. He also has been a Ledger-Enquirer humor columnist since 1987. He’s a graduate of Auburn University, and started out working for the weekly Phenix Citizen in Phenix City, Ala.