Father killed, toddler injured when shot while sitting in stopped car

A 25-year-old man was holding his 2-year-old in a car late Wednesday night in East St. Louis when a gunman opened fire on them, killing him and wounding the toddler.

Robert L. White Jr. and his child were in the front passenger seat of a car that was stopped around 11 p.m. at an intersection on Riverpark Drive near the Eads Bridge, Illinois State Police Trooper Calvin Dye said.

An SUV pulled up along the car’s passenger side and fired several shots into the car, Dye said. The man was pronounced dead at the scene; the child was taken to a St. Louis hospital and is expected to survive. Police have not released the gender of the toddler.

“We do feel that the victim have may been possibly targeted and known by the suspect,” Dye said.

A woman driving the car attempted to drive to safety during the shooting but ended up crashing the car, Dye said.

White suffered injuries to his chest and thigh. The toddler was struck in the chest.

Police had not arrested the suspect as of Thursday afternoon.

A second car was struck by stray shots, Dye noted, but no one was injured in that car.

Officials were unsure, as of Thursday afternoon, where White resided.

No additional information was immediately released, but Illinois State Police is investigating the shooting.

This story was originally published October 5, 2017 at 6:29 AM with the headline "Father killed, toddler injured when shot while sitting in stopped car."