Girl Scout Shot In Drive By - A 9-year-old girl from Indianapolis was shot in a drive-by while on a walk to pick up her Girl Scout Cookies, reported NBC News. Sinai Miller had been waiting patiently all day for the cookies so that she could begin selling them door-to-door around her apartment complex.
The incident with the Girl Scout shot in drive by occurred around 4 p.m. when Miller and her sisters left her apartment when a blue Ford Expedition reportedly drove past on the street out front and an arm stuck out whilst holding a gun.
"They walked outside the door, and they didn't even get to make it across the lot and then the shots start ringing out," said Mark Chandler, boyfriend of the mother of the 9-year-old Girl Scout shot in drive by, told Fox 13.
Chandler said he immediately ran downstairs to see what had happened after he heard the shots.
"I came downstairs and she was sitting over there, and that's her little boot, and that's the blood," said Chandler. "It's just ridiculous. She's 9 years old, man. She's very smart. She don't know nothing about no guns or no shots or whatever."
Shanita Miller, the mother of the Girl Scout shot in drive by was at the time just inside the door, reportedly zipping up the coat of another daughter. After hearing the shots, she then pushed two of her daughters back into the apartment. However, Sinai had already gone past all of them.
She went further inside the apartment and then began shouting, according to USA Today.
"Mama, mama, mama. It hurt. It hurt. It hurt."
Shanita Miller then asked her daughter, the Girl Scout shot in drive by, what hurt, and when she pulled up the Sinai's pant leg, the little girl was already covered in blood. Sinai's had been struck with a stray bullet in her lower left calf, fortunately missing bone and artery, doing no major physical damage.
She was later taken to a children's hospital nearby, according to The Washington Post.
The Indianapolis Star reported that the condition of the Girl Scout shot in drive by has since stabilized. However, her community was already shaken by the incident.
"The type of community this is, it's kid friendly and for this to happen apparently with no direction, they was just shooting," according to resident Tamera Williams.
The recent incident of the Girl Scout shot in drive by is believed to be the first time in the United States that a Girl Scout has been shot during a cookie sales project, according to the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana.
"We cannot complete our mission to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place when they are afraid to play in their own neighborhoods," according to Deborah Hearn Smith, chief executive of Girl Scouts of Central Indiana.
The Girl Scout council reportedly operates troops in 45 counties. After the incident of the Girl Scout shot in drive by, they have created a Web page so that Sinai, the little girl, could continue meeting her cookie goals as she recuperates.
We are so sad that one of our Girl Scouts was injured last night during a random act of violence. Our thoughts are with her and her family.
— girlscoutsIN (@girlscoutsIN) February 4, 2015
We are so sad that one of our Girl Scouts was injured last night during a random act of violence. Our thoughts are with her and her family. — girlscoutsIN (@girlscoutsIN) February 4, 2015
As of late Thursday, there were reportedly more than 2,000 boxes purchased in Sinai's name already. However, the question why the Girl Scout shot in drive by still remains a mystery.
Let's help the 9-year-old Girl Scout who was shot sell cookies. https://t.co/pGu7Vigxxg pic.twitter.com/cJAFX3CWQj — IndyStar (@indystar) February 5, 2015
Miller and Chandler said they thought their apartment complex was safe just two days ago. Now, they're already looking for a new place to move to because of the incident.
According to investigators, witnesses have reported seeing a person's arm sticking out the window of an SUV and firing indiscriminately. After the shots, the SUV just took off.
"It hurts our heart that we have to sit up here and cry about this, but what steps are we supposed to take with this," said Chandler. "This just don't happen. It isn't supposed to happen."
According to reports, just the previous year, a 16-year-old boy died after being shot in the belly as he was riding his bike on a summer night. A 14-year-old girl was also shot, this time on the back while she was sitting in a car. Fortunately, the girl survived. There was also another gunshot incident where a 13-year-old honor roll student had been critically wounded at a birthday party.
82 children died from firearm injuries from 2011 to 2013 statewide, according to the Indiana State Department of Health. 190 children were also treated for firearm injuries at the same period.
Suspects to the Girl Scout shot in drive by incident still have a few leads. According to police, they have no idea as to how many people were in the blue SUV or whether the driver was the shooter or who the real target was. They added that the Girl Scout shot in drive by was only hit by a stray bullet.
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