The 13-month-old girl who was tragically shot to death in her babysitters arms in New Orleans, has been identified.
Londyn Samuels was heading home from a day at the park when her life was tragically cut short. Samuels was killed after she was struck by a bullet that was fired into her 18-year-old nanny’s back as she carried her home. Samuels was just learning to walk.
“What kind of man would shoot at a woman holding a child?” asked Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas Friday as he pleaded with any witnesses to come forward. “That’s not the kind of person you want to protect.”
Two shots were fired during the incident, one tore through the nanny’s torso, striking Londyn in the chest. The teen, who is expected to recover, called Samuels’ father.
“She said, ‘Kee, we got shot – me and Londyn,” Keion Reed, Londyn’s father, told NBC News. “In the back of my head, this is a bad dream I haven’t woken up from yet.”
Londyn’s mother was at work with a non-profit cafe dedicated to anti-violence at the time of the shooting. She said that she can no longer look at photos of her baby girl without being reduced to tears.
NBC News reports:
“Police said two men were seen running from the scene after the shooting and they released grainy surveillance photos. They did not provide a motive for the shooting, but said there was no gunfight and the two victims were not caught in any crossfire.
“We think the neighborhood knows who they are,” Serpas said, adding that only one tip had come into CrimeStoppers despite a $5,000 reward.”
Police conducted an overnight canvass of the neighborhood, but were not successful. They questioned the residents of a home in the neighborhood who were at first uncooperative. After the police called in SWAT, the two men and one woman cooperated with police, but they were unable to file any charges.
Mayor Mitch Landrieu said that although New Oleans’ murder rate, which was once one of the highest in the nation, has dropped, Londyn’s death shows a need for “aggressive law enforcement” to stop gun violence.
“When a young man kills a child in the arms of an 18-year-old, we have to take it to a new level,” he said. “The shooting has got to stop.”
Londyn’s father says his daughter’s death has left an empty space in his heart.
“She just loved being around me and her mama. She was our world, you know? She was the highlight of everyday,” he said. “She was always happy. When I was down, she would crawl in the bed with me and say, ‘Dada’ and hit me in the face to make me smile.”
Reed was not only deeply saddened, but angry.
“My daughter didn’t do anything to him,” he said. “Why did she have to die?”
We hope to see progress in the battle for gun law reform in the United States soon.
SOURCE: NBC News | PHOTO CREDIT: Instagram
