10-month-old baby, teen mother among 6 killed in shooting massacre near Visalia
UPDATE: Sheriff names 6 killed in massacre near Visalia, including teen mom and baby boy
Six people — including a 16-year-old mother and her 10-month-old baby — were killed by gunmen early Monday west of Visalia, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office said.
Deputies said they believe two gunmen entered a home on Harvest Avenue near Road 68 in Goshen and began firing multiple rounds about 3:30 a.m., the office said.
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The names and descriptions of all of the victims were not immediately available, Sheriff Mike Boudreaux said in a video provided by his office, but he confirmed the age of the mother and her baby.
“This whole situation is tragic, but we have a 17-year-old mother and a 6-month-old child both of which were shot in the head,” he said. (Tuesday, the sheriff announced corrections to their ages, saying the mother was 16 and the child was 10 months.)
Boudreaux told the Los Angeles Times the young mother was found cradling her baby in her arms, lying in a ditch.
An older woman was also found shot in the head in her bed, and was possibly asleep when she was shot, he said.
The brutality and amount of violence at the scene, he said, led him to believe it was related to a drug cartel.
Two other people survived the massacre by hiding in the home, deputies said.
A 911 caller believed the shooting was from an active shooter because of the number of shots fired, Boudreaux said.
First responders attempted life-saving efforts on multiple victims that were unsuccessful, he said.
One victim who was still alive when deputies arrived died at an area hospital, the sheriff’s office said.
Detectives said Monday that the massacre was deliberate, and not a random attack.
“It appears this family was targeted and there are gang associations involved, as well as potential drug investigations,” the office said in an update. “A week ago, TCSO detectives conducted a narcotics search warrant at the victims’ home.”
This story was originally published January 16, 2023 at 8:39 AM.
