Robert Allen

Detroit Free Press

Police believe a gunman was targeting the four teens who were shot as they sat inside a car in a desolate area on Detroit's east side Monday night.

A 16-year-old Grosse Pointe Woods girl, identified by friends and classmates as Paige Stalker, was killed and three other teens were wounded when a man armed with what was believed to be an assault rifle fired up to 30 rounds into their parked car about 9:15 p.m. A fifth teen escaped injury in the attack.

Detroit Police Chief James Craig today said the attack "does not appear to be random."

"There are some other dimensions of this that we know about that I can't go into at this point," he said.

Craig said police have had conversations with the one teen who was not struck by gunfire.

He said the last report he received on the three injured teens was that they were recovering. Craig called the shooting "tragic."

The wounded teens were a 16-year-old female, a 16-year-old male and a 15-year-old male.

Police say the teens were smoking marijuana in a car on Philip near Charlevoix, just three blocks from Detroit's border with Grosse Pointe Park.

"A vehicle pulled in front of them, the driver got out of the passenger side and fired several shots," Detroit police spokesman Adam Madera said, adding that crime-scene investigators found 25 to 30 shell casings.

Investigators were initially told the gunman was wearing Army-style fatigues and possibly body armor, but police say they have gotten conflicting statements about what happened.

The victims initially told police they were looking for the brother of one of the passengers and had pulled over in the area of Charlevoix and Philip when the attack occurred. But their statements appear to be in conflict.

"They're scared to tell their parents what they're doing" in Detroit, Assistant Police Chief Steve Dolunt said today.

He said it appeared the teens may have made earlier stops to buy marijuana and to buy something at a gas station before parking. The shooting could've been connected with drugs or road rage, Dolunt said.

"All their statements don't seem to be meshing," Madera said of the teens.

Craig later said the he's aware of no statements indicating the teens were buying drugs and that it would be "pure speculation" to say so.

A spokeswoman at University Liggett School in Grosse Pointe Woods confirmed this morning that the dead girl was a student at the private school, but would not release her identity.

"As you can imagine, we are heartbroken over the death of one of our students, and our thoughts and prayers go out to her family and friends and to the entire Liggett community during this very difficult time," said Michelle Franzen Martin, director of Marketing and Communications.

University Liggett junior Alexander Minanov said all of his classmates are devastated by Paige's death. Minanov said he found out what happened through word of mouth.

"It's a really tough time," Minanov, 16, said. "It was just so shocking. I've been talking to a bunch of my classmates and everybody is shocked and still a little in denial. I've gone to school with her at Liggett since freshman year."

Minanov said he was in an advisory period — the equivalent of a homeroom class— with Paige.

"I saw her almost every day," he said. "She was cool to talk to. What I most remember was how hard working she was. She studied a lot and always did her homework. It's just really sad that instead of planning for Christmas, the family has to plan for a funeral."

Friends and fellow students took to social media Tuesday, using the hashtag #RIPPaige to share condolences or memories. Many posted on Twitter that they were praying for her family, or that Paige would be missed.

One Twitter user, @savannah_center posted: "Rip Paige. So many love you. To young to have been taken. #RIPPaige."

Some even mentioned they didn't know Stalker personally, but still felt affected.

"Devastated, saddened, and disgusted by this," @Umbra_Blades tweeted. "Even though I didn't know her, I am still in shock. #RIPPaige , justice will be served."

Harold Meeks, editor of the blog TellusDetroit.com, lives near the shooting scene and said he heard a fully-automatic weapon fired Monday night. He said the noise was so rapid, he first thought it was fireworks.

Then he heard it again.

"You can't pull a trigger that fast," Meeks said.

Camaro Newsom, 46, lives on the same block where the teens were shot.

He was lying in bed when he heard several bursts of gunfire at about 9 p.m., followed by sounds of cars speeding away. He said he thought he heard two different guns.

"I figured somebody was just shooting," Newsom said, adding that he frequently hears shots fired in the neighborhood. "A lot of people got guns around here."

He said it's terrible and sad that the teens were shot.

Police describe the suspect as a black man, about 6 feet tall, wearing a black hat and army fatigues driving a tan vehicle, possibly a Cadillac.

After the shooting, one of the teens drove the others about 2.5 miles to Beaumont Hospital on Cadieux in Grosse Pointe.

Dolunt said he hopes police get "a straight story" from the teens.

"The kids in Grosse Pointe -- they think it can't happen to them," he said. "People shouldn't blame the people in Detroit; your kids are buying drugs there."

Police are seeking the public's help to find the shooter. People with information on crimes can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP (1-800-773-2587).

Detroit Free Press Staff Writers Bill Laitner,Katrease Stafford,Gina Damron and special writer Emma Ockerman contributed to this report.

Contact Robert Allen at rallen@freepress.com or @rallenMI