ORLANDO, Fla. – The state attorney’s office released a statement Wednesday promising that four suspects in an Orlando drive-by shooting that killed a 6-year-old girl and a 19-year-old man will face “full consequences.”
Nico Brown, 15; Kny Adams and Brandon James Pickett, both 17; and Ricky Raymond Bowery Jr., 18, face charges of first-degree homicide stemming from the Aug. 29 shooting on Poppy Avenue.
State Attorney Andrew Bain’s office issued the news release on the shooting and said “when the facts require resolutions outside the capacity of the Department of Juvenile Justice, State Attorney Bain will treat dangerous juveniles as adults.”
“It is our job in the 9th judicial circuit to prosecute and keep the community safe. Early diversion helps juveniles stay off the streets, and we are investing more resources in programs that work. Diversion is twofold, and our office will take a tough stance on violent crime. When we charge teenagers as adults, we are deterring and addressing these acts of violence early to hold individuals accountable. Enough is enough,” Bain said in a statement.
While not specifically saying whether the teen suspects would be charged as adults, the entirety of the statement focused on treating “dangerous juveniles as adults” and “deterring and addressing these acts of violence early to hold individuals accountable.”
The Orlando Police Department said Ajahliyah Hashim, 6, and her mother were shot in their home and taken to a hospital, where the girl later died. A third person, 19-year-old Isaiyah Wright, was dropped off at Health Central in Ocoee and was later pronounced dead.
The department said the girl and her mother were not the intended targets of the shooting.
Prosecutors said the little girl was killed, and her mother was injured, by gang violence.
“This devastating incident has sent shockwaves through our community, leaving families in mourning and instilling fear among our residents. In response, we issue this resolute statement to make it abundantly clear that ‘gang and gun violence in our community will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,’” the state attorney’s office said in a statement.
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