Man fires gun near police just minutes after teen shot in Kensington

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- While Philadelphia police were investigating the shooting of a 15-year-old girl on Thursday night, they heard gunshots down the street.

Officers say they saw one of the suspects firing shots.

Police believe the two shootings, which took place 15 minutes apart, are unrelated.

The first shooting happened just before 10:30 p.m. Thursday on G Street, near East Allegheny Avenue in the city's Kensington section.

That's where police found a 15-year-old girl who they say was shot in both of her thighs.

Officers rushed her to the hospital in critical but stable condition; she is expected to survive.

Police believe the girl may have been an innocent bystander struck by stray bullets.

About 15 minutes later, while police were investigating that shooting, they heard gunshots go off a half a block away on the 800 block of East Allegheny.

That's where they say they saw a 29-year-old man firing shots and ordered him to get on the ground.

They noticed the shooter had been shot.

"They realized that 29-year-old who was firing shots was also shot in both of his legs and that 29-year-old claims he was shot by a vehicle and was returning fire," Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said. "Right now, he is a victim, but he's also in custody for having a gun and firing a gun. Preliminary information, he does not have a valid permit to carry."

As for the 15-year-old victim, she joins dozens of other young victims of gun violence across the city.

As of Wednesday, 80 children under 18 have been shot in the city - 72 of them are boys, 8 are girls, with the latest victim becoming the 9th.

Eleven juvenile shooting victims have died so far this year - all of them boys.

There is a curfew for minors that goes from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Action News has found that the vast majority of these young shooting victims have been shot during the time they are allowed to be outside.

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