Teen hospitalized after shooting outside Miami Gardens home

MIAMI GARDENS, FLA. (WSVN) - Gunfire erupted outside a home in Miami Gardens where people had gathered for a Super Bowl barbecue, sending a 13-year-old boy to the hospital. Police are now searching for the person who pulled the trigger.

The teen is currently being treated at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

On Sunday, Miami Gardens Police responded to the scene of the shooting on the corner of Douglas Road and Northwest 213th Street, just after 7 p.m.

Homeowner Nakisa Smith, a mother of 10, said someone drove by her home and at least one person opened fire. “I got little babies in my house. There were babies outside, playing,” she said. “My kids deserve to live. These boys got animosity, they got jealousy, they got hate. They need to take the hate somewhere else.”

Smith said they were in the middle of barbecuing in her yard as the Super Bowl was on TV when her friend’s son was hit.

Investigators said the victim, who is a Miami-Dade County Public School student, was attending the party and had stepped outside when shots were fired, striking the teen.

“I heard constant shots, back to back, back to back, back to back,” said neighbor Luigui Esteban.

A source told 7News that witnesses described seeing two males wearing dark clothing on bicycles who fired at the people at the Super Bowl party.

A 27-year-old at the party had a permit to carry a gun and returned fire, but no one else was hurt.

Smith said her husband tried to shield some of their young children.

Paramedics airlifted the teen to JMH with injuries that were not life-threatening.

Debra Gilbert, Smith’s mother, lives in the same neighborhood. She waited nervously across the street as crime scene investigators marked and collected bullet casings, before she could be reunited with her daughter.

“Too many crimes going on, you heard me? Too many crimes,” said Gilbert. “Now it’s getting ridiculous.”

Smith told 7News she believes the person or people behind the drive-by shooting were targeting her 17-year-old son because of a fight he had gotten into more than a year ago. “Leave my child alone!” Smith said.

As the bullets whizzed by, past the Super Bowl balloons and decorations, the teen’s little brothers and sisters were doing what they had to in order to survive. “They had to run for their life. They didn’t deserve this,” said Smith.

She also had a message for those who targeted her home. “Now [my children are] going to be scared to go to sleep at night, thinking you all are going to come back,” she said. “You all are damaging young kids. Stop it!”

Police have not provided details about possible subjects.

The victim is expected to be OK.

If you have any information on this drive-by shooting, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.

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