Woman, 19, slain; sister, 3 men hurt

Little else clear after shooting in Dorchester

Family and friends tried to console one another at the Glendale Street home of Alexandra ''Xanda'' Gomes, 19, who died yesterday after the shooting earlier on Elder Street. (Matthew J. Lee/Globe staff)

Instead of waiting for an ambulance, three of five people wounded in an early-morning shooting in Dorchester yesterday arrived at Boston Medical Center on their own, each with multiple gunshot wounds, Superintendent Bruce Holloway said at a press conference at police headquarters yesterday.

One victim, who relatives identified as 19-year-old Alexandra "Xanda" Gomes, later died of her injuries.

The other two victims who went to Boston Medical Center were Gomes's 18-year-old sister and a 30-year-old man, police and relatives said.

They were shot along with two others outside a house on Elder Street about 2:20 a.m., police said. The two other victims of that shooting, a 20- and a 23-year-old man, drove themselves to Brigham and Women's Hospital. Neither man's injuries were considered life-threatening, police said.

Boston police did not confirm last night the identities of the people who were shot. Relatives who identified Xanda Gomes as the homicide victim said she had a year-old daughter.

Dozens of mourners gathered yesterday at the Gomes family home on Glendale Street, less than a mile from the shooting scene. Many stood silently on the sidewalk and porch of the three-story house and some were crying. Gomes's sister, shot three times in the leg, had been released from the hospital and was inside the house, a relative said.

Alexandra Gomes "was a young girl that never bothered anybody," said Luis DosSantos, who said he was her uncle.

Gomes was the city's 53d homicide this year, compared with 60 people killed in Boston at this time last year, police said.

Boston police released few details about the shooting. They had not announced any arrests or released information about possible suspects or motives as of last night. Holloway said none of the victims was known to police before the shooting.

Elder Street residents said yesterday that they were disturbed by the return of violence to their neighborhood.

"We don't need it around here. We want the street to be quiet," said Fausto Rodrigues, who was painting his front step yesterday. Gunfire woke him, he said.

Holloway said police were not aware of any recent violence on Elder Street.

In August 2006, according to Globe reports, a man told police he had been stabbed in the chest while walking down Elder Street. The attack was believed to be random.

In February 2002, Jackson Barros, 21, was shot in the chest and injured on Elder Street. That shooting prompted violent retaliation in the Cape Verdean community, and Jose Rosa, 23, was shot and killed two days later on Shirley Street in Roxbury.

About 1:30 a.m. yesterday, less than an hour before the shooting was reported, police broke up a loud party at the house. Holloway said it is unclear whether there was a connection between the party and the shooting.

At the scene last evening, Gomes's friends had created a shrine in her memory, placing candles and flowers on a fire hydrant. None wanted to speak to a reporter.

"She got shot. What more can you say?" said one female, who would not provide her name. "You want us to stand here to explain something when she just passed away? She's our friend."

In an unrelated case, police also are investigating a shooting that occurred about 3:50 a.m. on Friday, outside an address on Walnut Place in Roxbury. The two male victims, one 41 and the other 17, were taken to Boston Medical Center, said James Kenneally, a spokesman for the Boston Police Department.

The man had life-threatening injuries; the teen's injuries were less severe. Kenneally did not have specific information about either victim's condition, but said they were both still alive last evening. He did not release their names. Police had reported no arrests in that case last night.

The Walnut Street home near where the victims were found appeared deserted yesterday.

Up the street at Walnut Market, cashier Toby Pena, 54, stood behind thick bulletproof glass. He said he wasn't surprised when he heard about the shooting.

"This place is dangerous," he said. The sound of gunfire has become commonplace. "Oh yeah, I hear it all the time."

At 7 p.m. yesterday , three teenagers were shot outside an address on Humboldt Avenue in Roxbury, in the third shooting of the weekend, Kenneally said. The victims were taken to Boston Medical Center with injuries that were not considered life-threatening. As of last night, no arrests had been made in the case. Police could not comment on whether the shootings were related.

Matt Collette can be reached at mpcollette@globe.com.