Several Brooklyn legislators have expressed outrage over the shooting of a 13-year-old Haitian-born boy, who was an innocent bystander, as at least seven shots were fired wildly at the corner of Flatbush Avenue and Beverley Road in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn Monday afternoon.
Police said Gama Droiville was hit the eye and ear by bullets fired by a gunman who was attempting to shoot a 24-year-old man.
Droiville is reportedly in stable condition at Kings County Hospital. The man was treated at the same hospital for an injury to his leg.
“I would like to extend our prayers and well wishes for the complete and speedy recovery of young Gama Droiville, who was struck in a hail of bullets in another senseless tragedy in our district,” said Brooklyn Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke, representative for the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn.
“The shooting of Gama Droiville was yet another in a series of violent and often times deadly attacks that shakes the community at its core,” she added.
Clarke said she believed the tragedy could have been prevented had Federal laws been enacted to prohibit and sanction gun trafficking.
“We must be resolved to do everything in our power to change the conditions that exist to put guns into the hands of callous and murderous individuals,” she said.
Council Member Mathieu Eugene and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams held a press conference at the corner of Flatbush Avenue and Beverley Road to speak out against the shooting and called on the community to take greater action to stem local gun violence.
“Senseless violence nearly claimed the life of more victims yesterday,” said Eugene, representative for the 40th Council District in Brooklyn. “A young boy, innocent of any crime, will carry the scars of another’s heinous act for the remainder of his life.”
He said the shooting was “a dark reminder of the tragic consequences that gun violence continues to wreak on our community.
“We must all come together as a community to address the issues that result in vile actions like the horrible shooting that took place yesterday (Monday),” he added.
Adams urged that the “tide against gun violence in our communities” be turned, noting that that “senseless bloodshed” is “tearing families apart and putting our neighbors in a state of fear.”
“This work must start in the home, with parents taking greater responsibility of their children to ensure their safety and the safety of others,” he said, urging the community to “revisit and share my video on how to check your child’s room.
“Public safety is the responsibility of the entire public, and I believe Flatbush can be a leading example of this effort to advance safer streets for all Brooklynites,” he added.
Councilman Jumaane Williams, who represents the 45th Council District in Brooklyn, said “words cannot express the frustration of adding more names to a list of gun violence victims that, unfortunately, continues to grow by the day.
“A 20-year-old man has apparently risked two victims’ lives, along anyone in his path, as a way to solve his problems,” he said. “Why does a 20-year-old think it is ok to fire a deadly weapon at someone, in broad daylight no less?
“His idiocy hit a 13-year-old, just walking down the street with his Aunt,” Williams added. “The shooter’s actions indicate he needs to be removed from our streets, and I hope for a speedy arrest.
“He not only injured his intended target, but he caused a young person to be shot in the head,” he continued. “Simply walking down the street shouldn’t mean a death sentence anywhere, for anyone, anywhere in this city. I pray that he survives and fully recovers from this horrific incident.”
As summer approaches, the councilman also urged that “young people have places to go after school.
“Let’s make sure that our young people feel like they have constructive ways to solve their problems, not that their only recourse is to try to end someone else’s life,” he said. “We need to ensure that recreational facilities, after school programs, job training and educational opportunities are available to all of our young people.
“Only when we take this seriously enough to dedicate the resources and the time in earnest will we stop seeing so many incidents like the ones we saw yesterday (Monday),” Williams added.
Droiville’s Haitian-born dad, Jimmy Marcel, said “doctors told us it’s a blessing he’s alive.”
