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Editor’s note: This article discusses domestic violence. If you or someone you love is experiencing domestic violence or an abusive relationship, call the National Domestic Abuse Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (1-800-799-7233) or visit www.thehotline.org. Callers can remain anonymous.Two teenagers have been charged after a shooting spree targeting members of the same family at several locations across an Illinois city left five people dead and two others wounded, authorities said.St. Clair County State's Attorney James Gomric approved charges on July 14 against 16-year-old Ja'ymier Davis, who will be prosecuted as an adult, according to a news release from Illinois State Police. The teen faces five counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated battery, aggravated vehicular hijacking, dismembering a human body, and unlawful use of a stolen firearm.A 15-year-old girl, who was not identified by authorities, faces a juvenile delinquency petition that includes first-degree murder charges. The St. Clair County State's Attorney's Office plans to seek a transfer of her case to adult criminal court, state police said.The charges come after the two teens were arrested on July 12 at Frank Holten State Park, a recreation area near the city of East St. Louis, Illinois, according to state police. Troopers stopped a vehicle that one of the suspects was driving by executing a precision immobilization technique, or PIT, maneuver.State police accused the teens of killing five people and seriously injuring two others in a "targeted mass shooting" in East St. Louis, located across the Mississippi River from downtown St. Louis. The 15-year-old girl's father, Marcus May, told local news outlets that he lost his mother, sister, and nephew in the shootings.May identified Davis as his daughter's boyfriend and said his daughter "decided what she wanted to do," according to television station First Alert 4. "I can’t show her no sympathy. I hate to be like that, especially in this time. But it is what it is," he told the television station.Multiple crime scenes investigated in Illinois shooting spreeAuthorities said the investigation began on July 12 after the East St. Louis Police Department requested assistance from the Illinois State Police after human remains were discovered at the Samuel Gompers Homes. The victim was later identified as Cherie L. May, 49, according to state police.Further investigation identified four other shooting victims, Devin D. May, 24; Patricia A. May, 74; Quentin L. Thompson, 21; and Shania W. Thompson, 25, state police said. The victims were found at three locations within a few miles of one another, Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly said at a brief news conference on July 12.One victim was killed near North 39th Street and Summit Avenue, three were killed at the Samuel Gompers Homes, and another died at Jones Park, according to Kelly.The two other victims were wounded at Jones Park and survived, Kelly said. They sustained serious injuries and were transported to a hospital in St. Louis.On July 14, state police confirmed that all the victims in the shootings were related to the 15-year-old suspect.USA TODAY reached out to the St. Clair County State's Attorney's Office for comment.
