A woman was gunned down in front of a North Philadelphia church before daybreak Wednesday.
Philadelphia police officers rushed to the intersection of 7th and Norris streets just after 5:30 a.m. to find an unresponsive woman on the sidewalk in front of the fenced in church parking lot with a gunshot wound to her head, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.
Medics pronounced the woman - later identified as 42-year-old Laura Abrams of Philadelphia - dead on scene minutes later, Small said.
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"It appears that the shooter or shooters was standing pretty close to this victim," Small said.
Police found evidence that at least one shot was fired, Small said.
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Police didn't immediately know a motive for the shooting or have any description of the gunman.
Entering Wednesday, at least 372 people had been killed in Philadelphia so far in 2023, according to police data. That's down about 20% from the same time last year, but still on pace to be one of the deadliest years on record since data began being tabulated 2007.
There are additional resources for people or communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Further information can be found here.
