Another violent KC weekend: Shooter opens fire at house with four children inside

Hours after a 3-year-old child was killed in a triple shooting, a drive-by shooter fired shots at a Kansas City house with four children inside.

There were seven people, including the children, at the house in the 5300 block of Garfield Avenue at the time of the shooting. None of them were struck by the gunfire.

The shooting happened shortly after midnight Saturday morning. Police initially responded to the house on reports of a disturbance involving a weapon.

The victims told police that prior to the shots being fired, a blue Dodge Caravan had circled the block several times. A woman was driving the minivan, and a man was in the passenger seat.

As the minivan approached the residence again, the homeowner started arguing with the woman. Someone inside the minivan fired several shots at the house, striking the front of it.

The minivan then fled from the scene. During their investigation, police found shell casings in the street in front of the house.

Police do not believe the drive-by shooting was related to the death of 3-year-old Marcus Haislip III. The boy and two adult relatives were in a vehicle at 54th Street and Park Avenue about 4 p.m. Friday when a man on foot started shooting at their car.

The two men, the boy’s father and the father’s uncle, were expected to survive their gunshot injuries.

Police said on Sunday that they had no further updates or additional information on the homicide investigation.

The shooting into the house and the slaying of Marcus come at a time when Kansas City is seeing more and more people being wounded by gunshots.

A story in The Star Sunday found that from 2014 to 2016, Kansas City has seen a 64 percent jump in nonfatal shootings, up from 290 in 2014 to 477 in 2015. This year is on pace to shatter those numbers.

In other gun-related crimes, Kansas City police were investigating two armed robberies this weekend.

A female employee at Swyden Cleaners in the 300 block of Gregory Boulevard told police that she had left the back door of the business open and a man entered it about 7:20 a.m. Saturday. The man told her to give him money so she wouldn’t get shot.

The man fled after she handed over an unknown amount of money.

On Sunday, a man allegedly threatened an employee during a robbery of the 7-Eleven convenience store in the 300 block of East 63rd Street. The robbery occurred about 4:35 a.m. The man was believed to have had a firearm inside the jacket. The man allegedly took several items and fled.

This story was originally published May 14, 2017 at 10:54 AM with the headline "Another violent KC weekend: Shooter opens fire at house with four children inside."