BOSTON (WHDH) - The tragic death of an elderly woman who was shot and killed in Mattapan on Saturday has local leaders calling for change.
Officers responding to a reported shooting in the area of 10 Mattapan St. just before 5 p.m. found Eleanor Maloney, 74, suffering from life-threatening injuries and two other victims with what were considered non-life-threatening injuries.
Maloney, a longtime worker at Boston Medical Center, was rushed to the hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
At the scene, Police Commissioner William G. Gross said Maloney was an innocent bystander.
“Our neighborhoods are better than this,” Gross said. “This is a time when we bond together and show people that this should not be tolerated.”
When asked about the shooting, Mayor Martin J. Walsh said, “as a mayor, we can do programming and things like that but just stop shooting.”
“An innocent woman got killed last night, there’s no excuse for that,” Walsh said. “There’s nothing that you can say, ‘oh they had a very sad upbringing,’ everyone had a sad upbringing, everyone had problems in their lives that they had to overcome. Take responsibility for your own communities.”
U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley also weighed in, saying, “Another terrible tragedy has taken another innocent soul from our district. As we mourn this tragic loss, we must make sure this family gets justice. We are better than this.”
Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins said, “I want to offer this family our condolences, but one of them said, ‘we’re sick and tired of prayers,’ and they’re absolutely right. They deserve accountability.”
Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to call Boston police.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)