5 dead including 2 kids after 4th of July shootings in east, south Fort Worth, police say
Five people, including two little girls, died and at least five others were injured on Fourth of July night after unrelated shootings in east and south Fort Worth, according to police.
Officers responded to the first killing scene in an area near Castleman Street and Wiman Drive about 11:30 p.m. A 911 caller said there was shooting going on in the residential neighborhood and there were so many gunshots that the caller could not get out of her car.
Gunshots were fired while people in the area were holding a block party to celebrate the Fourth of July, neighbors told the Star-Telegram.
Officers found a woman with a fatal gunshot wound and another person they initially believed had suffered a medical emergency, police said. Both died at a hospital.
Two additional shooting victims were taken to hospitals and are expected to survive, according to police. A spokesperson for MedStar said that the ambulance service transported five people to hospitals from the east Fort Worth scene — two with minor injuries and three in critical condition. All of those patients were adults, according to MedStar.
Her fiance identified the woman who was killed as Tasha Hymond, 39, a makeup artist from Fort Worth. The couple were attending the block party, which was near his parents’ home, to celebrate the holiday. Hymond died at John Peter Smith Hospital from gunshot wounds to her chest and arm, according to the medical examiner.
According to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office, a man who was taken to a hospital from the Castleman Street scene also died of a gunshot wound. Marcus Martin Jr. of San Diego, California, was shot in the back and was pronounced dead early Friday at Texas Health Harris Methodist on 5th Avenue. The medical examiner’s website was recently updated to give Martin’s age as 19. His death was ruled a homicide. Police investigators initially believed that his death might have caused by a medical emergency.
The shooting took place after a crowd estimated at 200 to 300 people “took over multiple blocks on Castleman St. and were launching fireworks towards neighboring homes,” police said.
Residents said the block party was very crowded and someone initially called police to help clear out people, but that police did not disperse the crowd.
Facebook Live video posted on Hymond’s page showed a heavy police presence on Castleman Street about 10:50 p.m., with officers blocking off part of the road at one point and more police cars appearing to circle the block, driving past a large crowd that lined the street as people shot off fireworks.
No arrests were announced in the Castleman Street-Wiman Drive shooting.
Homicide detectives believe that multiple suspects are responsible for the gunfire and are working to determine their identities. Police asked that anyone with information contact Tarrant County CrimeStoppers at 817-469-8477 or www.469TIPS.com. Tipsters may remain anonymous.
Young children among dead in shooting at car wash
Two toddlers were among six people who were shot at a car wash in far southwest Fort Worth.
A 4-year-old girl, a 15-month-old girl and a man were killed about 11:40 p.m. at the Crystal Clean Car Wash at 7524 W. Cleburne Road, police said.
The man, identified in court documents as 42-year-old Terrell Winn, was shot in the lower body. He was taken in an ambulance to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The suspect was among five other people, including the children, who were shot at the same time and who were taken in private vehicles to a hospital, police said. The suspect was shot by another person after he killed the victims, police said.
Kanard Murphy, 26, was arrested on suspicion of capital murder of multiple persons, police said.
Murphy was on Friday afternoon booked into the Fort Worth city jail after he received a medical evaluation at a hospital.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the children who were killed as 4-year-old Ivy Pierce and 1-year-old Wynter Thouston, who were sisters. They died early Friday at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest Fort Worth. Their older sister was wounded in her hand during the shooting, according to an affidavit supporting an arrest warrant for Murphy.
Another injured man who was hospitalized was expected to survive, police said.
The killings occurred when a fight broke out between Murphy and one of the victims, police said. The suspect pulled a rifle out of his vehicle and began shooting at that victim and others who were present, according to the affidavit. The children were sitting in a car when they were shot.
A Fourth of July celebration was underway near the car wash on Thursday night at the time of the shooting. Debris from fireworks was piled up in one of the car wash bays. A pink backpack was also left behind at the scene.
The car wash was open on Friday morning. Some customers who were washing their cars said they had not heard about the shooting. One man who works in the area told the Star-Telegram he stopped using the car wash because there were often people hanging out there, sitting in lawn chairs, at night, although he had not seen the group cause any problems.
“My heart breaks for the families who are waking up after the 4th of July, a day meant for celebration, to grieve the loss of young lives taken from senseless crime,” Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes wrote in a statement. “We share in their grief and remain committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of our community.”
Fort Worth police have investigated 36 homicides this year, compared with 46 at this time last year, the Police Department said.
Staff writer Emerson Clarridge contributed to this report.
This story was originally published July 5, 2024 at 7:20 AM.
