3-year-old among 4 people shot in Louisville on Wednesday

A 3-year-old child was one of four people shot in Louisville on Wednesday, police said.

Louisville Metro Police spokespersons said injuries sustained in the shootings, which they believe occurred in two separate incidents, are not believed to be life-threatening.

At about 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, LMPD officers responding to a report of a shooting on the 1700 block of Gallagher Street in Louisville’s California neighborhood were told a 3-year-old had been transported to Norton Children’s Hospital before the arrival of police, said LMPD spokesperson Dwight Mitchell in a press release.

Later, Mitchell said, a 20-year-old man arrived at Norton Hospital with a non-fatal gunshot wound. He added the shootings “appear to be related.”

Earlier on Wednesday, LMPD officers responded to a report of a shooting on the 600 block of Lampton Street in Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood, according to LMPD spokesperson Aaron Ellis. After the shooting, LMPD was informed by University Hospital that two men with non-life threatening gunshot wounds arrived for care, Ellis said in a press release.

LMPD said the two men shot were both “alert and conscious” but that the department did not know “the relationship of the victims, if any.” The department did not disclose the ages of the two men shot or any additional details.

The shooting occurred as a service was going on inside nearby Bates Memorial Baptist Church, Ellis said.

In a statement posted to Instagram, the church’s senior pastor, F. Bruce Williams, said the shooting happened “apparently in or near our parking area” as people were leaving a funeral on Wednesday afternoon. He said he was not present at the time of the shooting.

“Please pray for the family who we were serving during the funeral,” he wrote. “It is unfortunate that at the hour of their bereavement, while saying goodbye to a loved one, they had to endure this added stress.”

According to LMPD’s online gun violence dashboard, there have been at least 198 non-fatal shootings and 86 homicides so far this year. The dashboard, however, only listed two non-fatal shootings for July, despite more occurring.

Reach reporter Josh Wood at jwood@courier-journal.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @JWoodJourno.