7-month-old baby injured after shooting; police believe bullets meant for parents

HOLMESBURG - Disturbing details emerge as a 7-month-old baby is shot in Holmesburg.

"That seven-month-old boy is shot in the leg. The thigh," said Chief Inspector Scott Small.

Philadelphia police continue investigating the moments before a shooting that left an infant in the hospital. The baby boy is in stable condition.

"We know the shooting took place in the 4000 block of Meridian. On the sidewalk we found two spent shell casings from a semi-automatic weapon," said Chief Inspector Small. The shooting happened on Meridian Street, near Rhawn, in Holmesburg, just before 6 p.m. Thursday evening.

Drink bottles and other debris remain where investigators say a mother and father were sitting on the front lawn of a home with their baby when someone walked up and fired at them. Police say it's captured on security cameras on the block.

"You can see what appears to be a male, possibly a female, long hair, possibly dreadlocks, wearing a dark t-shirt and light blue jeans and fire a shot in the direction of the mother and father," said Chief Inspector Small.

Police say when they arrived a neighbor had taken the infant to Nazareth Hospital, who was then transferred to Jefferson Torresdale, which is a trauma hospital.

Police say the parents weren't at either hospital. Only the resident. They say they located the parents later a few blocks away from the shooting scene, uninjured.

"It took us about an hour to locate the mother and the father, who we have now," said Chief Inspector Small. Police say the parents don't live on Meridian and residents say they don't know them.

"It appears that the shooter was firing in the direction of mother and father," said Chief Inspector Small. Late Thursday evening, police were still interviewing the infant’s parents for any information about who may have shot at them and why.