Community holds vigil for 7-year-old girl shot in Palmdale

By Angel Jennings

Sept. 5, 2013 7:59 AM PT

A 7-year-old girl who was the victim of a car-to-car shooting in Palmdale continued to fight for her life Thursday as family and friends pray for a miracle.

Dozens of people held a vigil Wednesday night outside the home of the girl -- identified by family as Desiree Macias -- in the wake of a shooting that left the little girl brain-dead.

Candles, balloons and signs lined the front yard fence as relatives and school friends comforted each other.

“It’s not easy,” Rose Galvan, the girl’s aunt, told KTLA-TV. “But it feels good to see all these people caring about her…praying for her.”

Desiree’s aunt said Wednesday that the family planned to take the girl off life support. Meanwhile, family members released a post-surgery image to KTLA of Desiree in a hospital bed hooked up to life-support machines. The devices are the only thing keeping Desiree alive, relatives said.

“How can they do this, to a little girl?” Galvan asked. “What did they get out of this? Are they happy?”

Desiree was riding in her family’s car shortly before 1 a.m. Wednesday when, according to the aunt, a group of men started a verbal altercation with her mother’s boyfriend at a Mobil gas station at Pearblossom Highway and Fort Tejon Road.

The family tried to drive away, but they were followed by the other car while being fired at, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. It wasn’t until the chase ended that the family discovered Desiree had been shot.

Investigators found shell casings on the ground at the gas station and at two other locations, including one near the family’s home, KTLA reported.

Three people were arrested in connection with the incident, authorities said, but their identities had not been released. Investigators believe two more men were in the car that opened fire.

The investigation into the shooting is continuing.

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Angel Jennings

As assistant managing editor for culture and talent, Angel Jennings oversees the Los Angeles Times’ Metpro and internship programs as well as works closely with HR and department heads to help manage a broad range of responsibilities, including tracking, recruiting, interviewing and selecting diverse candidates for job opportunities and advancing the company’s efforts to promote diversity, equity, inclusion and access. She also works across the newsroom on retention, training and career development efforts. Jennings previously worked as a reporter in Metro. She got her start in the Metpro program in 2011 and has since worked on assignments with many departments in the newsroom, including Metro, National, Calendar, Business and podcasts. She is a graduate of the University of Nebraska.

Community holds vigil for 7-year-old girl shot in Palmdale

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