Family, friends and community members gathered this week to say their final goodbyes to Khloe Ishway, the 12-year-old girl killed in the crossfire of a shooting during a youth football game at Leon Day Park. A viewing service was held at Wylie Funeral Home ahead of her funeral, scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday at the Palladium Center on Liberty Heights Avenue.
Khloe was killed on October 3 in the crossfire of a shooting at the park, according to WBFF, which reported on the viewing held ahead of her funeral. The station’s account of the shooting states that four victims were shot, including Khloe, who later died of her injuries, though CBS News Baltimore has reported that there were four other victims in the incident in addition to Khloe. The discrepancy over the total number of people shot has not been resolved in public reporting.
Police have charged 23-year-old Tyree Reynolds with 30 counts, including murder, attempted murder and reckless endangerment, in connection with the shooting, per CBS News Baltimore. Investigators allege Reynolds fired 20 rounds from a short-barreled assault rifle into the crowd at Leon Day Park, the outlet reported, citing charging documents in the case.
Parking Dispute Preceded Gunfire, Police Say
According to the same WBFF report that broke details of the arrest, the shooting followed an exchange of gunfire that began after a dispute over a parking spot, and it was Reynolds who fired in the direction of the football field where the four victims were shot. Investigators said a medical examiner recovered a rifle projectile from Khloe’s body that was consistent with cartridge casings recovered where Reynolds was seen firing, the station reported.
Reynolds waived his bond hearing and was held without bail or bond following his initial court appearance, per the same WBFF account. The case remains open and active as detectives continue to search for an additional suspect, believed to have shot at Reynolds during the exchange of gunfire, the station reported.
Hundreds March for Justice
Hundreds of people gathered Monday evening for a peace walk to honor Khloe, beginning along West North Avenue and ending at Leon Day Park, according to WBAL-TV. Her family used the gathering to call for justice and asked mourners to remember her beyond the tragedy. “Just remember her as a loving person, good family member, good sister, good cousin, good friend,” a family member said, according to WBAL-TV.
The killing is the latest in a string of shootings that have claimed young lives in Baltimore this year. In a separate case, two young men, 19-year-old Wesley Harris and 18-year-old Donte Gregory, were killed when more than 20 rounds were fired near Ellicott Drive and Oakhurst Place in the Winchester neighborhood, according to CBS Baltimore, which reported that police were still searching for suspects in that shooting as well.
What Research Says About Violence Intervention
Baltimore has leaned on community-based violence intervention for nearly two decades, and new research offers a mixed but notable picture of its impact on young people. A Johns Hopkins-led study found that the city’s Safe Streets program was associated with a 42% reduction in homicides involving youth ages 15 to 24 at the neighborhood level, along with a 21% reduction in youth nonfatal shootings, according to the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions.
Researchers examined 11 Safe Streets sites across Baltimore from 2007 through 2023, analyzing the first 39 months of operation at each location, the center reported. Five sites had estimated reductions in youth homicides ranging from 37% to 100%, while two sites saw estimated increases of 46% and 89%, and the center cautioned that results varied greatly by site and were not statistically significant. Safe Streets relies on trained community messengers, often from the neighborhoods they serve, to mediate conflicts and prevent violence before it turns deadly; its first site, in McElderry Park, opened in 2007 and remains open today.
For now, Khloe Ishway’s family and neighbors are left with grief and unanswered questions, including the identity of the second alleged gunman police say they are still searching for. Her funeral this weekend closes one painful chapter of a case that, in the eyes of investigators, remains far from finished.
