Firing a gun in the city is illegal, unless you're at a shooting range. When thugs ignore that prohibition, results such as Friday night's death of Nafes Johnson are, tragically, all too common, police warn.
Stray bullets can travel a mile or more, police and gun experts say.
When an aim-impaired shooter lets loose on city streets, the bullets choose their own targets. Gene Joynes of the Crime Scene Unit, which gathers and analyzes evidence at all major crimes in the city. The type of gun and round, and the bullet's trajectory typically affect how far a bullet will travel, Joynes said. Often, they can match shell casings found at those scenes with the mystery bullet. Police suspect the bullet came from a shooting several blocks away, at 18th and McClellan streets.