Dominique Billips, 28, has been arrested and charged following a shooting that left a seven-month-old baby boy injured.
The incident took place on the 4000 block of Meridian Street in the Holmesburg section just before 6 p.m. on Thursday.
According to Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small, the baby was with his parents when a woman, later identified as Billips, approached them and began firing shots.
Surveillance footage released by the police shows Billips targeting the parents and their baby, who was seated in a stroller.
As the parents fled, Billips walked away from the scene.
The infant sustained a gunshot wound to his leg, but fortunately, no other injuries were reported.
The child was initially taken to a hospital by a private vehicle and later transferred to another hospital by police.
He is currently in stable condition.
When officers arrived at the scene, the baby’s parents were not present.
It took about an hour for officers to locate the couple a few blocks from the shooting site.
Investigators maintained a scene on Meridian Street and a secondary scene at 7700 Frankford Avenue, where they found two shell casings.
Lt. Dennis Rosenbaum of the Philadelphia Police Department mentioned that the parents later explained they fled due to outstanding warrants, fearing police apprehension.
A witness, expressing his concern and empathy, said, “It’s sad. I’m a parent myself, and I wouldn’t know what to do if something like this happened to my kid. Devastated. I was once a victim of gun violence in an attempted robbery. It just brings back a lot of emotions and fears that I once put away, you know.”
NBC10 spoke to another man, who wished to remain anonymous, and had witnessed the entire event.
“When I found out the baby was 7 months old and both parents said they have warrants, they got out of the car and I took the baby. I just felt like I had to protect this child. It was overwhelming. It was scary. This person came up with no remorse and just fired and walked away like nothing happened,” he recounted.
Thanks to tips sent to the police, investigators quickly identified and arrested Billips.
“This appears to stem from a $100 narcotics debt,” Lt. Rosenbaum explained.
“It’s sad, you see that video, she literally points the gun at the mother of the baby – who is also a juvenile – and fires. Luckily she missed, and that’s probably when the baby got hit.”
Investigators believe the child’s father was the intended target.
The District Attorney’s Office has charged Dominique Billips with aggravated assault and other related offenses.
She is now awaiting formal arraignment.
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