Philadelphia teen killed in Fourth of July shooting described as being 'full of joy' by family
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The family of the man who was killed during a shooting on the Fourth of July in Philadelphia said he was days away from his high school graduation and had big dreams for his future.
Maurice Quann, 19, was killed last Thursday night when gunshots rang out at 60th Street and Kingsessing Avenue.
WATCH | 1 dead, 8 injured after shooting at "pop-up" event in Southwest Philadelphia
Police say around 11:30 p.m., a car pulled up and someone inside started firing at people attending a 'pop-up' party in Southwest Philadelphia.
Police said nine people, including three teenagers and six adults, were shot.
Quann was one of the victims. His family said he was rushed to the hospital, where he later died.
"I just want to know like why? Why come and do a drive-by when there are a bunch of kids outside?" asked Francine White, Quann's cousin.
On Monday night, Action News spoke with Quann's family in the area where the shooting happened.
They said they remember Quann as energetic, entertaining, and full of life.
"So full of joy," Alayah Anderson said. "He was the life of the party. Any room he walked into, we would just all have fun."
Yakema Smith, Quann's cousin, said his family doesn't understand why someone would do this.
"No one in the world should want to hurt anybody," Smith said. "But him, he wouldn't have hurt a fly. He didn't do nothing to nobody."
According to his family, Quann lost his mother and several other relatives in a car crash a couple of years ago.
After that, he set a goal to graduate from high school and go to college.
On Monday afternoon, Quann's family received his diploma from Bartram High School. They said he was just days away from walking across the stage at graduation.
Instead of planning for his future, Quann's family is now planning a funeral. They hope the police can find the person responsible.
"They deserve to be behind bars for the rest of their lives," Smith said. "They took someone special from this earth that still had so much life to live."
Philadelphia police said they are still working to identify a suspect and motive.
