8-year-old shot to death after crash in Houston
HOUSTON, Texas -- Homicide detectives have confirmed that an 8-year-old girl was shot to death after surviving a car crash early Saturday morning.
The crash and subsequent shooting took place on West Fuqua Street near Sam Houston Parkway.
Officers say two cars were headed south on West Fuqua when they crashed into a black Honda Accord going east along the Beltway feeder road.
Soon after, officers believe someone in one of the two cars that were headed southbound started firing gunshots.
"At some point somebody from one of the two other vehicles on Fuqua got out, shot up the other vehicle, striking a young, eight-year-old girl in the backseat. She later died from her injuries at the hospital," said Detective David Stark with the Houston Police Department.
The 8-year-old girl was identified as DeMaree Atkins, who was inside of the black Honda Accord.
The child was traveling with her mother, Toyia Thomas, and police believe they were just bystanders.
No word on why the other two cars crashed into the Accord. It's not clear if they were racing or if it was a road rage incident, or something else.
Officers are looking for the drivers of those two cars. One of the cars, a white Pontiac, remained at the scene but the driver took off. The driver of the other car, drove off. Their car is described as a dark sedan, possibly a Toyota, possibly with front-end damage.
Thomas said the third car came up after the initial crash.
"I looked over and thought she was trying to help," Thomas said. "She pulled a gun out of the window and she started shooting. Each one of those bullets hit the back of my car where my baby was. I pulled her out of the car, I didn't even know she had been hit. I thought she was still asleep. I laid her on the ground and when I looked at her jacket, I saw a blood stain. I pulled her shirt up, and she got shot - the bullet went in the right and came out the left side."
