Mother says 5-year-old girl shot in Durham had just gotten off school bus

The person who shot a 5-year-old and a 16-year-old is still on the run after a drive-by shooting in Durham on Tuesday.

Police spent hours investigating after the shooting happened around 2:52 p.m. near the Oxford Manor Apartments, a Durham Housing Authority Complex just north of downtown.

Officers said they found a 16-year-old boy and a 5-year-old girl with gunshot wounds at the scene when they arrived.

Authorities believe the child and teen were shot at by a passing vehicle.

The mother of the 5-year-old, Jessyca Dunkins, was devastated in speaking with WRAL News, saying the family wants justice in the shooting and to live without worrying for their safety.

Dunkins said her daughter, named Madison, had just gotten off the bus right before the shooting.

"She had literally got off the bus, two minutes from walking from the bus stop," Dunkins said. "She put her book bag down. She came out, we stood in front of the yard, and gunshots just rung. And the more we were running ... it seemed like the more we ran, gunshots. They just kept coming toward us."

"I want justice for my baby," she said. "Because that's insane."

Dunkins is a single mother of seven children. She was grazed in the back by a bullet.

"My kid's scared," Dunkins said while crying. "She don't want to come home."

Neighbors in the area said violence in that area of Durham happens too often, but rarely to children.

"It's every day. This is everywhere, but not a little kid though," Jody Davis said. "Summer time is going to come too. What else is going to happen?"

EMS took the two children to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

"They need to be found A-S-A-P," said Tierra Caraway, the aunt to the children who were shot. "Like now."

Durham Housing Authority (DHA) said they're not able to access the security footage from the shooting.

A DHA spokesperson said Oxford Manor cameras were recording at the time, but the visuals were offline for physical review. The camera was not able to capture the incident.

Dunkins created a GoFundMe to help with her daughter's medical expenses.

Data on shootings in Durham

Durham Police data as of last Saturday shows three people under the age of 18 had been shot in the city this year so far. Madison is the youngest person shot in Durham so far in 2024, according to police data.

As of Tuesday's shooting, that now makes at least five juveniles shot in 2024 in Durham.

People who live in the area tell WRAL News that violence often happens in the Oxford Manor.

"It's crazy, man, you know what I'm saying? You know how Braggtown is," said one neighbor. "I thought Braggtown was good. I came out here about a month ago, and I see this right here. It's the same."

Authorities said the investigation is ongoing and asked anyone with information to contact the Durham Police Department at 919-560-4440 ext. 29252 or CrimeStoppers at 919-683-1200.