Philadelphia officials confirm that a 14-year-old boy has been charged with murder concerning the shooting death of a woman on a playground where she worked.
According to Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw, the teenager was charged with murder and other offenses related to the Friday shooting of Parks and Recreation employee Tiffany Fletcher at Mill Creek Recreation Center in West Philadelphia.
A shootout involving the 14-year-old and at least one other individual caught Fletcher, 40, in the crossfire.
At a news conference on Monday, DA Larry Krasner confirmed that the teen had been charged as an adult but wouldn’t reveal his name.
When officers responded to the scene around 1:30 p.m. on Friday, they heard multiple gunshots and saw people running from the playground.
After her shooting, Fletcher fled to a nearby business where workers tried to treat her wounds. Officers transported her to a nearby hospital, but she died later that evening, Outlaw said.
According to Outlaw, a 9mm “ghost gun” was recovered in a nearby trash can after the 14-year-old boy was arrested after a brief chase.
It is still unknown what prompted the shootout, and authorities are searching for other suspects. Officers found 12 fired shell casings at the scene.
While the city, like many others, faced a staff shortage in the spring, Fletcher agreed to work as a pool maintenance attendant. Fletcher decided to continue working at Mill Creek Recreation Center after the pool season ended, according to Parks and Recreation Commissioner Kathryn Ott Lovell, who called her “a beloved employee.”
In Ott Lovell’s words, “Tiffany answered every day the call to serve children and families in her community and to make her children and her family proud.”
In addition to Ott Lovell, four other employees were also at the recreation center at the time of the shooting.
“All of us feel outraged, hurt, and saddened, but we cannot express it with words alone. A dedicated, passionate, and driven Tiffany Fletcher was doing her job outside Mill Creek Rec Center when she was struck by crossfire in the middle of the day in an unconscionable act of violence.” Mayor Jim Kenney said.
From September 3-9, Philadelphia recorded 11 homicides, according to DA Krasner.
According to Krasner, there have been 384 recorded homicides this year in the city, an increase of 4% from last year.
Krasner emphasized the importance of understanding that the city of Philadelphia is dealing with an inexcusable, deeply disheartening, horrible level of gun violence affecting children.
The city’s mayor commented on the recent spike in violence, calling it “outrageous” and “unacceptable.”
“It’s just unfathomable to think of how many lives were impacted by gun violence, and my deepest sympathies go out to the loved ones of everyone affected,” Kenney said.
The city has now offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone who fires a weapon within 500 feet of a school, recreation center, or library due to ongoing violence near those locations.
“Our playgrounds, our parks, our rec centers should be safe and sacred places in our communities,” Ott Lovell said.
For more on this story, please consider these sources:
- 14-year-old charged with murder in killing of Philadelphia employee at playground CNN
- 14-year-old fatally shooting rec center employee will be charged as an adult CBS Philly
- Beloved Mom Killed in Crossfire, and Suspect Is 14-Year-Old Boy PEOPLE
- 14-year-old charged as adult in Philadelphia shooting; Victim caught in crossfire, police say WGAL Susquehanna Valley Pa.
- Mother of slain rec center worker wants killer ‘put away for life’ 6abc Philadelphia