Philadelphia crime: 3 homicides within 45 minutes across Philadelphia in Memorial Day weekend violence

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — The long holiday weekend has been marred by an outburst of violence in Philadelphia.

Police responded to three separate deadly shootings in less than an hour Sunday night.

In Philadelphia’s Feltonville section, gunshots rang out on Rorer Street by Bingham shortly before 10:30 p.m.

Police believe several shooters began firing at a crowd that had gathered up the street. It appears that the group at the top of the block returned fire.

ALSO SEE: Teenager shot, injured after large crowd forms near park in North Philadelphia

Arriving officers found one man who was shot multiple times in his head. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Investigators examined two groupings of spent shell casings that included more than 20 rifle and handgun rounds, and another grouping of around a dozen at the top of the block.

The victim was later identified as 34-year-old Devan Harris.

His friends say Harris was devoted to his family, which included a young daughter.

Chris Sanders, a friend of Harris, told Action News they were like brothers.

“You can’t break that bond. He’s always going to be our brother. Always, forever. It’s just sad that nonsense like this always happens to innocent people,” Sanders said.

He believes Harris was not the intended target of the shooting, and now, the world has lost another special person.

“He was everything. He inspired people to do better, loved going to the gym, man, and working out every day,” Sanders noted.

Roughly 30 minutes after the first incident, there was another fatal shooting in the city’s Strawberry Mansion section.

Shortly before 11 p.m., officers were called to the corner of Cumberland and Stanley streets. A 23-year-old man had been shot and taken by private vehicle to the hospital, where he was soon pronounced dead.

Investigators recovered more than 20 spent shell casings at the scene.

The victim has since been identified as Anthony Turner.

Angelo Booker from Philadelphia Ceasefire was out Sunday night posting signs around the area, and working to stop the violence.

“I was just watching the basketball game and I heard a barrage of shots,” Booker said. “I come down here to see what can I do to help. If I can do some outreach — whatever was necessary.”

He said he hoped that being present in the community might encourage someone, maybe a witness, to talk about the case.

“They are a victim themselves. They can call us and get the help that they need,” he added.

ALSO SEE: Teenager killed after shooting in Philadelphia; 3 suspects sought

Then, around 11:15 p.m. Sunday in North Philadelphia, officers were called to the 2900 block of West Wishart Street. Police found a 55-year-old woman who lived on that block shot once in her head.

One spent shell casing was recovered.

Police don’t know the motive but said the gunman was on foot and ran away in an unknown direction. Police say it’s unclear if she was the intended target.

The victim’s daughter spoke with Action News after the shooting. She said her mother, Tonya Shelton, had been living on the block since the 1970s.

“My mom was very sweet. She was a social butterfly,” said Sara Jackson, Shelton’s daughter. “My mom was a really good person. She did not deserve that to happen to her.”

There have been no arrests in any of these cases.

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