What started out to be an evening of birthday celebration ended in a night of horror when a man was fatally shot on a Newark street according to family members of the man.
Now Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray and Newark Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose have announced that they are investigating the shooting in which two people were shot, one fatally, early this morning a spokesperson for the Essex County Prosecutor's said.
According to authorities, shortly before 1:30 a.m., Newark police officers were dispatched to the two hundred block of South 6th Street on reports of shots fired.
Arriving officers determined that two people, a male and a female, had been shot outside a residence at this location authorities said.
The male victim was identified as Eric Bryant, age 44, of Newark, was pronounced dead at University Hospital at 2:01 a.m., according to Chief Assistant Prosecutor Thomas S. Fennelly, of the Prosecutor's Homicide Unit.
The female victim, a 45 year old Newark resident, was admitted to a local hospital in stable condition, according to Fennelly.
Family members said the pair was just done with celebrating one of Bryant's children birthdays and walked outside with the unidentified female when gunfire rang out.
This incident is being investigated by the Essex County Prosecutor's Major Crimes Task Force, which includes detectives from the Newark Police Department.
The investigation is active and ongoing at this time, according to Fennelly. Anyone with information is asked to call the Prosecutor's Tips Line at (877) 847-7432