A Bay Area family is still processing the freeway shooting that ended with two kids injured over the weekend.
“They’re driving along and then all of a sudden they heard a loud pop and the way she described it, it’s like somebody popped a balloon right behind their ear,” said Christina Lee.
She is a close friend of the victims in the latest Bay Area freeway shooting.
Lee said the family was driving back home Saturday night along Interstate 880 north near Hesperian Boulevard in San Lorenzo when gunshots randomly hit their car, injuring the two children in the back seat.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Lee shared a photo of the car which shows the gunshot piercing through the door, hitting the 13-year-old in the leg, and the 12-year-old in the abdomen.
“They were in shock, this is not something you’d expect. It’s not your first thought that you're driving on the freeway and a bullet would come into the vehicle,” said Lee.
Over the years, shootings have become a cause for concern along Bay Area freeways.
Last April, 5-year-old Eliyinah Crisostomo was killed in the back seat of her family car as they drove along I-880 near the Fremont-Milpitas border.
And in 2021, 2-year-old Jasper Wu was killed during a rolling gun battle along I-880 as he was asleep in his car seat.
In response to those crimes, and others, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a pilot program to add severity cameras to California freeways, including those in Alameda County.
NBC Bay Area reached out to Caltrans for an update on the cameras, but have yet to hear back.
Lee said the 12-year-old is still recovering in the hospital, but is beginning to walk. The 13-year-old has been released from the hospital but he’s still feeling the effects of the traumatic incident.
“Twenty-four hours after the shooting happened, and the son was released from the hospital, he was terrified to ride in a car again to ride home,” said Lee.
The CHP said the investigation is ongoing and they are still looking for the suspects. Anyone with information is asked to contact them.
As for the family, Lee says they’re trying to determine the next steps after this terrible crime.
“They are incredibly traumatized, they're still in a state of shock," she said. “This is not something that’s ever been a part of their life in the past.”
