Shakara Green, a 35-year-old woman from Rochester, New York, was killed in the early morning hours of August 2, 2026, when gunfire erupted near the intersection of Clifford Avenue and North Street. At approximately 3:30 a.m., about 100 people were gathered along Clifford Avenue just east of North Street, with members of the crowd standing in and around a gas station parking lot and spilling into the roadway. Police said a vehicle became stopped in traffic near the gathering, and someone inside leaned out of the passenger-side window and opened fire on the crowd.
Green was standing on the sidewalk near 917 North Street when she was struck in the neck by gunfire. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Five other people were also wounded: three people who were 18, along with a 20-year-old and a 21-year-old. Police said those five victims suffered gunshot wounds to their lower bodies and their injuries were not considered life-threatening. Investigators said Green did not appear to have been the intended target of the shooting.
The shooting came during a particularly violent weekend in Rochester, when large late-night street gatherings were followed by several incidents of gunfire. Another fatal shooting had occurred in the North Clinton Avenue area shortly before Green's death, killing 14-year-old Zahnia Barr and wounding others. Authorities said both Barr and Green appeared to have been unintended victims, but police did not publicly establish that the two fatal shootings were connected.
In the days after Green was killed, her family described her as generous, outgoing and devoted to the people around her. Her mother, Michelle Griffin, said Green had recently started a new job as a certified nursing assistant and was preparing to move into a new apartment. Family and friends gathered near the site of the shooting for a prayer circle and balloon release, remembering Green while calling for whoever was responsible to come forward. Griffin said the circumstances were especially painful because her daughter had apparently been an innocent bystander rather than the person the shooter was trying to hit.
Green had survived an earlier shooting in Rochester. Her family said she had been shot in May 2024 at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, making her fatal shooting more than two years later particularly devastating to those close to her. At the memorial after her death, relatives and friends emphasized that she had been looking forward to a new stage of her life before the August shooting abruptly ended it.
The Rochester Police Department's Major Crimes Homicide Unit took over the investigation. Police sought witnesses and recordings from people who had been in the crowded area, but authorities did not publicly identify the person who fired from the vehicle, release a description of that individual, or announce a motive. Investigators also had not publicly identified the vehicle involved or clarified whether another person in the crowd had been specifically targeted.
As of the most recent publicly available reporting located through August 11, 2026, no arrest had been announced in Green's killing, no suspect had been publicly named, and no criminal charges had been filed in connection with her death. The case remained an active homicide investigation, with police continuing to seek information or recordings that could identify the shooter and explain what led to the attack.
