The family of a 17-year-old college-bound girl who was shot and killed over the weekend at a party in Signal Hill is calling for justice to find the gunman responsible for their loss.
Seven people were shot at a party on Saturday shortly after 10 p.m. on the 1000 block of Burnett Street, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. A total of four females and three males, ages ranging from 17 to 19 years old, were shot at the gathering. Among them was 17-year-old Amari Johnson, who died of her injuries at the hospital.
“See, you can run, but you can’t hide. Trust me,” Marion Warren, Johnson’s grandmother, said in a message to the person who shot her granddaughter.
“You know, we’re going to pray for you because you killed my grandbaby,” a heartbroken Warren said as she and her family navigate their grief.
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Warren shared that Johnson was just three weeks shy of her 18th birthday. She and her twin brother were excited to celebrate their big day together.
“She was getting ready to go to college,” Warren said. “She had letters, different letters coming to her for different colleges to go to.”
Surveillance footage from a neighbor’s home from that night showed a frantic, young woman with blood on her chest ringing her doorbell, looking for help after shots were fired.
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“There was a shooting,” the young woman is heard saying in the video. “Help! There’s nowhere to go.”
Homeowner Maria Molina was inside at the time and heard the shots ring out. She said she was too terrified to open the door. Her son tried calling 911 but said the call would not go through.
The surviving six victims suffered non-life threatening injuries, according to LASD.
Details on what led up to the violence were not clear. A description of the gunman was not immediately available.
Anyone with information on the case is urged to contact LASD’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Those who wish to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or send tips to lacrimestoppers.org.
