Source: Andrew Lichtenstein / Getty
Even in the middle of a pandemic, J’Ouvert still happened, and sadly the violence also returned as well.
Despite the West Indian Day Parade being one of the many annual NYC celebrations that were canceled by the city due to COVID-19, the celebration leading up to the carnival, J’Ouvert still went down. The event, which was also supposed to be canceled due to safety concerns concerning the coronavirus, took place in Brooklyn early Monday (Sept.7) morning.
At a crowded intersection of Nostrand Avenue and Crown Street in the Crown Heights, five people, including a 6-year-old boy and his mother, were shot while partaking in the unsanctioned event. The boy, who was later identified as Maxwell Cesc-Dinho, was hit in the leg. His mother, Patricia Brathwaite, was struck in the foot as they exited a cab just before 3 am.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison, who was on the scene, told reporters that the mother and son were just arriving at the party as the gunfire rang out.
“What we have right now is she was getting out of a cab with her son, and then two individuals pulled out firearms and started shooting, and they were both struck.”
The other three victims, Yves St. Flavin, 40, Bob Charlotin, 46, and Kelly Barthold, 34, also were injured during the shootout that appears to gang-related, according to Harrison. Still, he says it’s not clear if any of the victims were the intended targets. All of the victims were taken to Kings County Hospital and are expected to survive.
Two people were arrested and are awaiting charges, and a gun was recovered on the scene. The orange menace, Donald Trump, who is currently flying around the country on his rona tour, wasted no time in speaking on the night of violence and used the shooting to pump his failing message of needing “law and order.”
Sighs, we gotta do better. Let’s not give this man any more talking points. We hope everyone was masked up and got tested following the event.
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Photo: Andrew Lichtenstein / Getty
