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Girl, 6, hit by vehicle while fleeing gunfire in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA — A 6-year-old girl running home after hearing gunshots was struck by a hit-and-run driver in a Philadelphia neighborhood, authorities said Wednesday.

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The girl was struck by a minivan going the wrong direction as she fled toward her home in the Kensington neighborhood of the city, WPVI reported. The child was taken to an area hospital, where she is in stable condition, the television station reported.

“We don’t know who the shooter was shooting at, but we don’t believe anyone would be firing shots at a 6-year-old girl,” Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small told KYW. “At least nine shots were fired.

“The 6-year-old child (was) launched about 50 feet in the westbound direction.”

The girl’s mother, Jalisa Love, said her daughter, Honesty, suffered injuries to the entire right side of her body, including her face, WPVI reported.

”Whoever did this, it has to stop. It’s a shame and it’s got to stop,” Love told the television station, “She’s 6, she’s 6. What am I going to tell her? She’s 6. She don’t want to go outside no more, go to school, no nothing. What am I going to do? What am I going to do? What am I going to do?”

Small said his department is continuing to review surveillance cameras in the area, KYW reported. Officers are looking for people who may have seen the shooting or a gray or charcoal-colored minivan, which police believe was the vehicle that struck the girl.

“When police found her, she was conscious,” Small told the television station. “When we got her to the hospital, she was still conscious.

“She’s very lucky.”