CINCINNATI -- "This is heavy on us," Courtney Gatewood said Tuesday night at her brother’s makeshift memorial on Vine Street. "We never saw it coming."
Gatewood’s 17-year-old brother Clarence -- known to his loved ones as ‘Byrd’ -- was shot Monday evening near the corner of Short Vine and East Daniels Street, just a few blocks from the University of Cincinnati. He died of his wounds at the UC Medical Center.
Cincinnati Police Lt. Steve Saunders described the suspected shooter, who had not been apprehended, as a 6-foot-tall black man in a black leather jacket and white pants. Witnesses told police he left the area in a black Ford Explorer.
Courtney and her siblings gathered Tuesday night near the site of the shooting to light candles and release balloons in Clarence's memory. According to Courtney, her brother was a kind-hearted young man with an infectious smile and a cutting sense of humor.
"Right now he’d be telling us all we punks," she said. "We punks for crying."
Police ask anyone with information about this homicide to call the Criminal Investigation Section at 513-352-3542 or Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040 or text “CINTIP” plus your message to CRIMES (274637). Callers may remain anonymous and may receive compensation for their information, police said.
