Capital murder charge after 5-year-old girl shot dead in Cypress, Harris County

Jeremy Porter, 47, faces capital murder charges after a girl aged five was fatally shot while riding in a family car in Cypress, northwest Harris County.

Jeremy Porter, 47, charged with capital murder over fatal shooting of Zah'Layah in Cypress

A 47-year-old man has been charged with capital murder following the shooting death of a five-year-old girl in Cypress, northwest Harris County, click2houston.com reports.

Jeremy Porter is accused of opening fire on a family vehicle near the intersection of Grant Road and Jones Road at approximately 11:30 p.m. on Saturday. The girl, identified as Zah'Layah, was struck by gunfire and was later pronounced dead at a hospital. Two other children in the car sustained injuries from shattered glass.

The children's mother, Monica Hicks, said she and her five children were driving home from her mother's house when they were, in her words, "gunned down."

"I just want whoever did it to my baby to know exactly what happens when you just senselessly shoot into a vehicle and my windows are crystal clear so you see my children inside of my car," Hicks said. "I didn't exchange any words with the individual. I didn't see them coming. I didn't even know they were behind me."

Investigators initially indicated the shooting may have stemmed from road rage. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced Porter's arrest on Sunday night, noting that automated licence plate reader technology played a key role in helping detectives rapidly develop leads in the case.

Court documents released Monday state that Porter admitted to shooting at the vehicle, claiming he believed its occupants had fired at him first and were driving erratically.

Porter's next court hearing was scheduled for Tuesday. The investigation remains ongoing.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)