Megan Doto
Megan Doto was an innocent victim, a pregnant mother of two who, while sitting in front of a Frankford home on a sunny Sunday morning, found herself in the crossfire of a callous gunman and his fleeing target, Philadelphia police say.
Authorities claim that Devon Guisherd squeezed off close to a dozen rounds in rapid succession, one of which sailed for most of a city block before striking the 25-year-old Doto in the face. Doto, who was expecting the arrival of her third child on Oct. 15, died within hours. Doctors tried to save her unborn child, a girl, by delivering her via Caesarean section. But she, too, perished early Monday due to traumatic injuries.
“She’s a totally innocent victim,” Philadelphia police homicide Capt. James Clark said of Doto during a Monday afternoon news conference. “This happened on a Sunday in broad daylight.”
The gunfire occurred at about 10:25 a.m. near the intersection of Griscom Street and Adams Avenue. Doto was sitting in a chair in front of a home at 1520 Adams, reportedly keeping an eye on a neighbor’s 7-year-old child who was playing outside.
Initially, police said they believed that the shots originated from a moving car. But on Monday, Clark said that a then-unidentified male shooter stood at “the top” of Griscom Street, north of Adams, as he fired relentlessly at the moving car, described as “a four-door white vehicle.” The captain said that the shooter wore black clothing.
A friend of the victim reportedly used a sweatshirt as he tried to stem Doto’s bleeding while neighbors called 911. Doto was rushed to Temple University Hospital, where doctors delivered her baby in critical condition. An obituary for Doto stated that the newborn was named Nicoletta Rose Doto-Cooper. The mother died at 12:36 p.m. and the newborn at 1:13 a.m. Doto had two other children ages 6 and 4, Clark said.
A motive for the shooting is not known. “We don’t know what it’s about. We do know in the area there are a lot of drug problems,” Clark said.
Police identified Guisherd as the shooter in a news release issued early Tuesday afternoon. Police did not disclose what led them to suspect him as the shooter.
Guisherd, 26, remained at large on Tuesday afternoon. He was described as black, 5 feet 9 inches tall, 150 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. His last known address is on the 4700 block of Penn St. in Frankford. He is considered armed and dangerous. A $40,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killer. Call the Homicide Unit at 215–686–3068 or 215–686–3334 to report information. ••
Devon Guisherd