Two adults also suffered non-life-threatening injuries as a result of the shooting, police said.
No arrests have been made in the case.
Shanita Gathers, 40, said she was standing on her front porch that night when people began running and screaming. As others fled, she ran toward the sounds of gunfire looking for her children.
Unbeknownst to Gathers, her children had taken refuge safely at a neighbor’s home, but as she frantically searched for them, she found a small boy who had been shot and was lying in the driveway.
“Obviously, when you’re trying to gather your kids, you pray that you don’t see people on the ground,” Gathers said in an interview the day after the shooting. “This time, those prayers weren’t answered.”
Longtime residents of Akron Street said they’ve been hosting Fourth of July celebrations in the area for the past five years, but have never seen anything this violent. Some neighbors are hosting free parties with games and barbecues that residents say draw outside visitors.
Police previously said at least two people fired guns at other people during the incident. Prince George’s County police are offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to an arrest and indictment.
“Let me be clear: anyone found to have been involved in this shooting will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy, a Democrat, said in a statement after the shooting. “We will take every step within our discretion to ensure that those responsible for this violence face the consequences of their actions.”
