One man was charged and a second was being held by police Sunday in the shooting death of a 7-year-old girl who was riding in her family’s car as they pulled out of a Houston Walmart, according to officials and the family’s lawyer.
Eric Black Jr., 20, admitted to driving an SUV from which a passenger opened fire, striking Jazmine Barnes in the head on Dec. 30, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday.
A second suspect was also taken into custody, according to local reports. He was named as Larry Woodruffe, 24, by local outlets and the Barnes’ family lawyer, Lee Merritt.
The tragic killing appears to be a case of mistaken identity — not a racially motivated murder as had originally been feared, according to authorities.
“At this point, it does not appear it was related to race,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.
Police last week released a sketch of a suspect that showed a white man in his 40s, but said information they received on Saturday made them change course. Both suspects in custody are black.
“We were focused first on the description of an Anglo male, a pickup truck and then eventually the composite that came up,” Gonzalez said Sunday.
People from across the country — including activists and celebrities like Gabrielle Union, Olivia Wilde and Ava DuVernay — tried to help with the investigation since the drive-by shooting.
Jazmine had been in a car with her mother and three sisters when, it is believed, a man in a red or maroon pickup truck drove up and opened fire.
The little girl was fatally shot in the head. Her mother, LaPorsha Washington, 30, was shot in the arm and Jazmine’s 6-year-old sister was hit by shattered glass.
Cops now say that the man in the red pickup truck was probably just a witness.
“We believe now that that driver is most likely a witness either by sight or sound to what actually transpired,” Gonzalez said, asking that person to come forward.
“You’re talking about small children,” Gonzalez added. “They witnessed something very traumatic and it is very likely that the last thing they did see was that red truck and that driver and that’s what they remembered last.”
The sheriff said a tip he received led to Black’s arrest. Cops didn’t believe the family was the intended target.
Court documents show Black and the other suspect learned that they fired into the wrong vehicle by watching the news. Black told investigators that the gun used to kill Jazmine was at his home, and cops found a 9mm pistol there.
Woodruffe appeared in court Sunday on a drug-possession charge. The judge said he is also a suspect in a capital murder investigation.
Chris Sevilla, Jazmine’s father, said that he was feeling “a bit of relief right now” after the arrest.
Jazmine’s funeral, which will take place on Tuesday, is being paid for by NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal and veteran Houston Police officer Kenneth Miles, according to a report.