(AP) — A 6-year-old computer whiz. A young mother working for a better home for her kids. An 8-year-old who loved to make dance videos.
From San Francisco to South Carolina, a spate of shootings claimed the lives of people celebrating or just taking a drive over the Fourth of July weekend. Chicago saw one of its bloodiest holiday weekends in memory, with 17 killed and 70 wounded by gunfire. The incidents come amid fears that the coronavirus pandemic, protests against racism, rising gun sales and an election year could make for a particularly deadly summer.
Here is a look at some of the victims from the Fourth of July weekend.
‘She died in my arms’
Secoriea Turner should have been making TikTok videos on her phone Sunday evening, her mother said.
Instead, Charmaine Turner appeared before reporters with Atlanta's mayor and interim police chief to plead for anyone with information about her 8-year-old daughter's death to come forward.
Secoriea was riding in a car with her mother and another adult just before 10 p.m. Saturday. They exited the interstate and tried to enter a parking lot when they were confronted by "a group of armed individuals" blocking the entrance, police said. Before the driver could make a U-turn, shots were fired and Secoriea was hit, Turner said.
"She died in my arms," Turner said.
The shooting happened near the Wendy's where Rayshard Brooks, a black man, was fatally shot by a white police officer June 12. The fast-food restaurant was burned during protests the next night and became a gathering place for demonstrations against police brutality.
Charmaine Turner noted the time as she spoke at a news conference Sunday, saying her daughter would have just finished eating dinner: "She would have been on TikTok dancing in her phone."
The girl's father, Secoriya Williamson, reflected on the simple pleasures of an 8-year-old girl: "She just wanted to get home to see her cousins. That's all she wanted to do."
‘A chance at life’
Studious and sweet, Natalia Wallace was preparing to start second grade in a few weeks at a Chicago elementary school.
The 7-year-old was killed Saturday night by a gunshot to the head. She was standing on the sidewalk in a West Side neighborhood where she'd visited her grandmother. Authorities said gunmen got out of a car and fired their guns.
Her father, Nathan Wallace, said he'd hugged his daughter minutes before the shooting.
"I just wanted her to have a chance at life," he said. "Whatever she wanted to do, I was going to be there, no matter what. To see my daughter on the table with a gunshot wound to the forehead, that'll change somebody's life."
A 33-year-old man was charged with murder Monday.
Teachers remembered Natalia as shy yet diligent as she completed remote lessons at the end of first grade.
"Sometimes, her quiet spirit gave her the strength to lead the reading lessons within her group, and she soared when it came to doing math," said a statement from the school. "During e-learning, Natalia was always present and participating. At the end of each class session, she would type in the chat box, 'I Love You.'"
‘He was going to be something’
Jace Young was a "bright star" with an unlimited future, his uncle said.
Six-year-old Jace was shot and killed while attending a birthday party Saturday in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco.
Nate Ford said his nephew was intelligent and empathetic beyond his years.
"We knew he was going to be something," the boy's uncle told the San Francisco Chronicle on Monday.
Jace was a whiz with computers, always chose milk over soda, and refused to eat meat, his uncle said.