In a grim start to the New Year, a Minneapolis mother watched in horror as celebratory gunfire turned her home into a crime scene, leaving her 11-year-old daughter, Laneria Wilson, injured by a bullet that unexpectedly pierced through the child's bedroom window. Shenedra Ross, the girl's mother, described the tragic moment when midnight gunfire became a reality too close to home, "Twelve o'clock hit we heard a gun go off. It sounded like it was right in our yard," she told Hoodline. The incident marked a violent interruption to the family's New Year's celebrations.
The alleged shooter, identified as 44-year-old William Turner Jr., has been charged with recklessly firing a weapon and possessing a firearm, per a report by FOX 9. The arrest came after authorities utilized surveillance and Snapchat videos to link Turner to the gunfire that left young Laneria wounded. Police revealed that Turner, in a celebratory fervor, recklessly discharged an AR-15 rifle, with one shot striking Laneria. After initially denying any wrongdoing, Turner admitted to the shooting when confronted with video evidence.
The community has been quick to support the Wilson family, raising more than $5,000 through an online fundraiser to help them move to a new home, away from the trauma of the shooting. Laneria, who needed surgery to remove a bullet fragment from her face, is reportedly recovering and expected to be okay. Police continue their investigation into the incident that occurred on the 2300 block of Bryant Ave. N, as reported by KARE 11 news.
As Laneria's story unfolds, it echoes previous acts of violence against children in Minneapolis — a narrative all too familiar for the community, and for Ross, who shared with CBS News Minnesota, her painful association, "Them three babies that got hurt not too long ago that's honestly all I kept thinking about, my baby could have been gone." The shooting has not only scarred the family physically, but also emotionally, as they ponder a departure from their long-standing neighborhood in search of safer environs.
