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Three kids among nine people shot at baby 'gender reveal' party

Woman killed in shooting
Posted at 10:06 PM, Jul 08, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-10 07:26:30-04

COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio -- Nine people, including three children, were shot at a gender reveal party Saturday night.

A mother-to-be lost her unborn baby after being shot in the leg, the woman told Cincinnati-based WCPO. Mark Denney, Colerain Township Chief of Police, did not confirm that an unborn child had died in a Sunday evening news conference.

Police said 22-year-old Autum Garrett, of Huntington, Indiana, died in the shooting.

Denney said they believe two people opened fire at about 11:20 p.m. inside a home near Cincinnati, Ohio. 

RELATED: Everything we know about Colerain Twp. shooting

No one is in custody, but "detectives have a couple of leads they're following up on," said Jim Love, Colerain police public information officer. Denney said there is no information regarding suspects or motives. 

The children shot -- ages 2, 6 and 8 -- were transported to Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center; their injuries aren't considered life-threatening.

 

Two adult victims are in “serious but stable condition,” Kristy Davis from University of Cincinnati Medical Center said Sunday evening. 

A gender reveal party is a kind of baby shower, when an expectant parent or parents reveal their unborn child's sex.

The partygoers were watching a movie when gunfire rang out, police said.

Radio logs and 911 calls indicate there were two shooters.

LISTEN: 911 calls reveal chaos after mass shooting

"I just seen two people walk by," a man told a 911 operator. "I looked outside, next thing I know they just ran in and just started shooting."

Both were wearing hoods, another witness said. She told the operator she was sitting outside in a car and heard gunfire.

"They didn't see me," she said.

The hooded figures ran off into the night, she said. She thought one was wearing a green hoodie, and the other was wearing a blue hoodie. She couldn't give the operator much more of a description.

Candice Verga, a family friend, said she'd been at the party earlier Saturday night. She heard gunfire when she was walking back toward the home but thought it might be fireworks.

Verga said the party was for the mother who lost her unborn child. Police have not confirmed this information. 

"Whoever did this, I hope they get caught and they fry," she said. "If they are out there listening, we are looking for you."

Cheyenne Sizemore, a neighbor, said she was sitting in bed when she heard six or seven gunshots.

"At first I thought it was just fireworks, because they were lighting off fireworks," Sizemore said. "Then I saw a woman run out of the house screaming, 'Call 911,' and that's when I jumped out of bed, locked all the doors, and I did call 911."

Sizemore said the neighborhood's been quiet in the year-and-a-half she's lived there.

Cincinnati police homicide detectives are assisting in the investigation. Officers from other departments, including North College Hill and Green Township, also were at the scene overnight.

Love said he didn't know if the children were targeted.

“You’re hoping that there won’t be situations like this,” Love said. “These are the nights that you look back on and you regret that they ever happened. This will be one of those nights.”

No other details have been released. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040. Tipsters can remain anonymous.

The incident is one of the largest multiple shootings in the Tri-State in recent years. The "shootout" at the Cameo Night Club in Cincinnati last March 27 killed two and wounded 15. One man faces murder charges; the other alleged shooter was killed.

READ about other notorious killing rampages in the Tri-State.

A triple shooting in Colerain Township left two teen sisters dead on Oct. 21, 2015. Their brother, Matthew Hayden, 22, pleaded guilty to killing them and wounding their friend outside their home. Hayden was sentencedto life in prison last April.

Eight members of the Rhoden family were shot to death in Pike County on April 22, 2016. No one has been charged in their deaths.

WCPO will update this story when more information is available.