CLEVELAND, Ohio — An 11-year-old boy is recovering after police say he was stabbed in Cleveland's Hough neighborhood Sunday night.
Officers responded to the reported stabbing shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday near E 95th Street and Ansel Road. When they arrived, EMS transported the child to the hospital in critical condition.
“It was a kid. Being stabbed in the back is terrible,” said neighbor Jennifer Johnson.
Investigators believe a group of young people were fighting Sunday night. When it ended, they said an unknown girl went into a nearby home, grabbed a knife and stabbed the 11-year-old as he was riding his bike.
Johnson, who's lived in the neighborhood for more than three decades, said the recent violence makes her worried for her young grandson.
“You have to let your kids kind of experience life, go out and enjoy themselves. But you still always have the fear [when] something happens,” she said.
Ward 7 Cleveland City Council member Stephanie Howse-Jones called the incident shocking.
“It’s just heartbreaking to hear that one of our babies has been involved in an incident like that of being harmed," she said.
She told News 5 that she has been in touch with the victim's family about resources. She said it's a priority to give the city's young people more positive outlets.
“We have a lot that are going on. We need more, right? The first connecting point is absolutely within our home, but also in our neighborhoods and in our streets," said Howse-Jones.
Johnson agreed that tackling violence should be a community effort.
“We don’t have those people any more - people looking out for each other. Everybody is like, if they see something, they don’t know something and they’re not going to tell,” she said.
Investigators hope witnesses come forward to help hold the person responsible for the stabbing accountable.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact Cleveland Police at 216-621-1234.
