17-year-old girl identified as victim killed in shooting at Mall of Louisiana, officials say
A 17-year-old girl, Martha Odom, has been identified as the victim killed in a shooting at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge, officials said Friday, and a 17-year-old suspect is in custody.
Five others were wounded when gunfire broke out during a fight between two groups in the food court on Thursday afternoon, police said.
One of the injured, a 43-year-old man, remains in the hospital in critical condition, Baton Rouge Police Chief T.J. Morse said.
Lafayette's Ascension Episcopal School described Odom, a senior at the school, as a "joyful presence whose kindness and infectious enthusiasm brought light to all who knew her."
The school said two students were wounded and two others were witnesses.
One suspect in the shooting, 17-year-old Markel Lee, turned himself in on Friday and faces charges including first-degree murder and multiple counts of attempted murder, Morse said at a news conference.
Morse said police are asking for the public's help to find a second suspect wanted in connection with the shooting.
The five people detained on Thursday have been released pending further investigation, Morse said.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry called the shooting a "deeply troubling act of violence" that appears to have been driven by "neighborhood gang disputes that seem to want to spill out in our public places, putting innocent people in danger and taking the life of an innocent young lady."
"This conduct is not going to be tolerated in this state," he said at the news conference.
An employee at the mall at the time of the shooting told ABC Baton Rouge affiliate WBRZ, "I heard a loud 'pop' and then another 'pop.' ... I turn around and I see people dropping to the floor and then I saw the gun. ... And he was turning around, shooting randomly."
"I called security and said, 'Shots fired in the food court, people are down, people are hit.' And then the cops came and it was just total chaos ... blood was everywhere," she said.
"I've never seen anything like this in my life," she said.
The Mall of Louisiana is closed on Friday "out of respect for the victims."
"Our deepest sympathies are with everyone who was impacted by the senseless act of violence that took place here today," the mall said in a statement.
