WASHINGTON — The family of a 29-year-old man killed Tuesday in a quadruple shooting outside his friend's funeral service is alleging that police did not do enough to prevent his death.
Terell Coghill was attending the memorial service of 24-year-old Stephon Carroll, who was shot to death on March 23 in Southeast, when he himself was shot outside the Stewart Funeral Home in the 4000 block of Benning Road, NE. Three other people were shot and taken to a local hospital to be treated for serious injuries. Their conditions are still unknown.
In a statement emailed to WUSA9, Coghill's family said he was a man deeply into music, trying to provide for his daughter.
"We would like Terell Coghill to be remembered as a loving father, brother, nephew, and cousin," the family wrote. "His life was tragically cut short while he was attempting to mourn a close friend."
The statement went on to add that police had been asked to attend the service due to concerns of violence, with the shooting happening less than 20 minutes after the end of the funeral. But the family alleges the police in attendance left too quickly.
"Having one officer in close proximity (across or down the street) does not mitigate violence," the Coghill family wrote. "Why did police leave the premises within 10-15 minutes of the funeral ending without ensuring the safety of the funeral goers? Instead of focusing so much on why the shooting may have happened, focus more on how it could have been prevented if Metro PD would've actually done the job they were asked to do that day."
WUSA9 has reached out to DC Police for a response to the family statement, and we are waiting to hear back.
Police said Tuesday they were searching for a white Lexus in connection to the shooting, which they found Wednesday. No suspects have been identified in regards to the shooting at this time. Law enforcement sources tell WUSA9 they believe the shooting was connected to a group called the "Fox5 crew."
"If you have problems out there and you got some history, just try to communicate," said Tayon Jackson, who lives in the same neighborhood as the funeral home. "Talk, don't pull guns. We got kids out here, we got elders."
READ: The full statement from the Coghill family is below.
To Whom It May Concern,
To begin we would like to send our condolences to the already grieving family members of Stephon Carroll, who's memorial service ended in yet another tragedy. We would also like to send our condolences and heartfelt apologies to the family who's funeral service had to be postponed due to yesterday's tragic events. We ask for the public and media to respect our privacy at this time as this tragic incident was unexpected and our family is still grieving at this time.
We would like Terell Coghill to be remembered as a loving father, brother, nephew, and cousin. He enjoyed spending quality time with friends and family. He was an artist who enjoyed drawing and creating music. His life was tragically cut short while he was attempting to mourn a close friend. We ask the media not to run with assumptions about the motives of this tragic shooting with little to no actually evidence. Making assumptions based on the friend he was mourning is ignorant and inappropriate. We ask the police not to give contradicting statements and press releases so early into their investigation. The Metro Police Department want to applaud themselves for "responding quickly" to the incident, when they were asked to attend the funeral service for this EXACT reason, to prevent and mitigate violence. Most funeral services with an increase police presence have multiple police officers on site at the start and end of the actual funeral, and they also force funeral goers to leave the premises after the ceremony has concluded. Having one officer in close proximity (across or down the street) does not mitigate violence; as everyone is aware most violence happens when majority of people are outside i.e. the start or let out of the actual funeral. This tragic shooting occurred 17 minutes after the funeral concluded and claiming people were "milling about" is also inappropriate. Who leaves a funeral within 10 minutes of it ending without saying farewell to friends and family? Why did police leave the premises within 10-15 minutes of the funeral ending without ensuring the safety of the funeral goers? Instead of focusing so much on why the shooting MAY have happened, focus more on how it could have been prevented if Metro PD would've actually done the job they were asked to do that day.
Sincerely,
The Coghill Family