Investigators looking into a double shooting in Pittsburgh are examining spent shell casings found on the pavement outside a Northview Heights apartment building. The physical evidence suggests a heated fight began outdoors on Hazlett Street before moving upstairs into a second-floor residence on Wednesday morning.
The gunfire triggered a ShotSpotter alert at 9 a.m. in the 100 block of Hazlett Street. Dispatchers quickly alerted patrolling officers that multiple neighbors were calling in gunshots with potential victims inside the complex. Units arrived within minutes to secure the surrounding area.
Inside the unit, police discovered 24-year-old Mark Allen Jones dead on the second floor alongside 30-year-old Shaelynn Maria Moore. Both had died from gunshot wounds. Jones resided at the Northview Heights property, while Moore lived in Brighton Heights, a neighborhood a few miles away.
Authorities are treating the incident as domestic in nature and investigating whether it was a murder-suicide. Pittsburgh Public Safety spokesperson Emily Bourne referred to the deceased as a shooter and a victim during initial briefings, though officials have not publicly specified who pulled the trigger.
Four young children were caught in the middle of the horror upstairs when the shots rang out. The kids, ranging in age from 7 to 11, escaped without any physical harm. Officers safely escorted them from the home and turned them over to medical staff for evaluation and specialized interviews.
The housing complex, operated by the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh, saw officers block off the area while detectives gathered evidence. Housing officials confirmed they are offering trauma counseling to local residents shaken by the violence.
The Allegheny County Office of the Medical Examiner is performing autopsies to determine the official cause and manner of death for both Jones and Moore. Police emphasized that the scene is contained and no other suspects are on the run.
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