The mayor of Hartford, Connecticut is calling Friday for three victims of a drive-by shooting who have an "extensive firearm involvement and criminal history" to cooperate with investigators after a 12-year-old girl died in the attack.
Secret Pierce passed away Friday morning after being one of four individuals struck by gunfire from a vehicle that was traveling at a "high rate of speed" Thursday evening in the city, according to Mayor Luke Bronin.
"This is a painful day in our community," Bronin told reporters Friday. "I don’t have the words. I want to say to Secret’s mom and loved ones that we are all so deeply sorry. That we are with them today in grief, in prayer and with love."
Bronin said he believes the three other people that were shot – which includes an 18-year-old man who suffered serious injuries – have more to tell police about who was behind the violence.
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"And while I am sorry for the wounds that they experienced last night and hope that they recover quickly and heal in all ways... I also call on them to share whatever they know," Bronin said. "Because I believe they know who fired the bullets that killed the 12-year-old girl. And I believe that one of the bullets that was intended for one of them took the life of a 12-year-old girl."
Bronin continued by saying that it is "not acceptable not to cooperate with investigators and it is not acceptable not to share the information you know about who took the life of a 12-year-old girl.
"That is not fair to her family. That is not fair to her loved ones," he said in a plea for the shooting victims to cooperate. "It's not fair to her memory. It’s not fair to our community."
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Pierce was sitting in a car Thursday night when she was hit by a bullet, police told Fox61. As of Friday, no suspects have been arrested.
Leslie Torres-Rodriguez, the Superintendent of Hartford Public Schools, described Pierce as one of the district’s "beautiful and very capable students."
"Secret was a 7th grader at Milner Middle School and a tragedy like this ripples outward in a community and affects so many," Bronin said.
"Everyone who was a part of her life, we all stand together with you today and our team at the Hartford Public Schools and our partners throughout the city will do everything they can to support you and our community as a whole," he also said, while thanking the "doctors and the nurses and whole team at Saint Francis [hospital] who tried all night to save Secret’s life."
