Shots fired, 17-year-old hit in face

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - Mobile Police say a 17-year-old was shot in the face early Tuesday morning.

According to police, it happened around 1 a.m. outside of the Temple on St. Francis and North Claiborne Streets in downtown Mobile.

Jeff Hendrick lives right across the street from the parking lot. He was taking his dog for a walk when it happened.

"We heard about five gunshots go off, and then after that, I keep telling people it looked like a shark swimming through a school of fish the way people dispersed after the gun shots went off. It was pretty quick,” said Hendrick.

According to Mobile Police, the gunfire came just after a fight in the parking lot on St. Francis and North Claiborne. They said a 17-year-old boy was hit. Officer Chris Levy with the Mobile Police Department said the boy reported that at first, he wasn’t aware he had been hit.

"He was standing outside. There’s supposed to be a fight in the parking lot. He hears shots fired, and he felt pain to his face, so he went back over to the Temple to call police to help him,” said Levy.

Hendrick said the people outside his apartment weren’t the typical late night downtown crowd.

"It started off, there was a lot of young people out here, and then as the night went on, it got a little older and more densely populated,” said Hendrick.

Hendrick said there were hundreds in the parking lot which backs up to several late-night 21-and-over bars. However, many of those gathered were not of age. They had just left The Temple after a teen dance.

"It’s not really the area of town where you should have a collection of teens at one o'clock in the morning, where the primary function for that time of day is for the bar community,” said Levy.

Officer Levy said the fact that they were there is only half the problem.

"[It's] this whole mentality of ‘If something goes wrong, I’m going to pull out a gun and start shooting,'” said Levy.

Police said everyone in the parking lot is lucky to be uninjured. The 17-year-old that was hit was taken to USA medical center but did not receive any medical attention.

Police are looking for more information about the shooter and the events that took place. They are asking for your help.
If you have any information, call Mobile Police at 251-208-7000.