High school senior identified as person killed in shooting at Lousiana mall

Martha Odom, 16, died from a gunshot wound to the chest according to the local coroner’s statement

A high school senior has been identified as the person killed in a mass shooting that also wounded five others when two groups exchanged gunfire inside the food court at a mall in Louisiana’s capital city on Thursday afternoon, according to officials.

Martha Odom, 16, died from a gunshot wound to the chest, according to a statement issued Friday by the local coroner’s office.

Martha was one of three high school seniors from Ascension Episcopal school caught in the crossfire at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge. The school on Friday issued a statement saying Martha’s classmates would remember her as “a joyful presence whose kindness and infectious enthusiasm brought light to all who knew her”.

“Ascension Episcopal School carries this cross together,” the statement said. “We are holding one another close with an immense amount of faith and love.”