Girl Struck by Stray Bullet in Playground: “Why Would You Do This to Me?”

A brave little girl may be confined to her walker when she celebrates her 7th birthday soon.

The 6-year-old was struck in the knee by a stray bullet when a gunman barged through a D.C. public housing complex playground last Tuesday night, firing several shots.

Witnesses told News4 there were about a dozen children in the Park Morton apartment complex playground at the time.

"It was chaos. It was pure chaos," a witness told News4. "I have never seen children that terrified in my life. It was disturbing."

News4's Mark Segraves spoke to the girl, who is confined to a wheelchair -- and a walker, if she's feeling strong -- for the time being.

"It felt like a pop," the girl said. "I heard two shots. One for a man that got shot in the back, and the other one was on my knee. I tried to run to my mom.

"I think about the [shooter], and I would say to him, 'Why did you say this to me?'" 

She was open about the incident, and explained she's scared to go back to the playground.

"I might get shot again," she said.

"It doesn't make sense that these kids can't go outside and play, it's just sad," her mom Colandria Smalley said. 

The girl added she's glad to be out of the hospital -- she has big plans for her birthday party.

"For my birthday I'm going to have a beach/cookout [party]," she said. "I think I'll be able to walk on my walker [by then].... I need that to help me learn how to walk."

A 25-year-old man was also wounded in the shooting, and is expected to make a full recovery.

No arrest has been made, but Thursday, D.C. police announced the numerous security cameras placed throughout the complex were not working during the shooting -- meaning there is no surveillance video of the suspect.

Police described the suspect as a 5'4" black man in his mid-20s with a light goatee who carried a silver handgun and wore a black skull cap, black hooded sweatshirt, black cargo pants, black booths and black sunglasses the night of the shooting, police said.

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