One man has died, a woman has been wounded, and a baby remains unharmed following a police chase in New York City that ended in a gunfight.
On Thursday, December 6, officials from the New York Police Department (NYPD) held a press conference to explain what happened. Police began pursuing a vehicle in Brooklyn after ShotSpotter, a system that detects gunfire, alerted them to gunshots in the Crown Heights area.
NYPD Chief Jeffrey Maddrey stated that officers responded to reports of a shooting at around 3 p.m. local time. When they arrived at a building on N. Portland Avenue, a witness described a car with an out-of-state license plate that was barely hanging on.
The police found the car at the intersection of Fulton Street and Washington Avenue. The driver, a woman believed to be the mother of the baby, sped away as soon as she noticed the police vehicle.
“They started speeding up and cutting through blocks, running red lights as our officers pursued them closely,” said Maddrey. Eventually, the car became stuck in traffic, and police surrounded it.
At this point, a man in the passenger seat tried to exit the car but struggled to open the door. He was armed and pointed a gun at the officers, leading to the shootout.
During the confrontation, officers fired approximately 18 to 19 shots as they instructed everyone in the vehicle to drop their weapons. The woman driving the car exited and attempted to flee, and that’s when officers discovered the child in the backseat.
Maddrey explained that one officer shouted, “Baby, baby,” urging others to stop shooting. Another officer quickly entered the vehicle and rescued the baby.
Reports indicate that the woman is 23 years old, the man is 21, and the child is just 3 years old. The woman was apprehended after a brief chase, while the man was shot and later died at the scene. This man was wanted in connection with a homicide case from March 2024.
A semi-automatic gun recovered at the site could hold 30 rounds, but it’s not yet confirmed if the suspect fired it, as New York law generally limits firearms to 10 rounds, except for competitions or ranges.
The woman suffered two gunshot wounds in her right thigh and both she and the baby were taken to a nearby hospital. Reports indicate that officers attempted to perform CPR on the man before he died, and his identity has yet to be released publicly as authorities are still notifying his family.
While the driver hasn’t been formally charged, police allege she broke several traffic laws and was driving without a car seat for the child.
