CASA GRANDE, AZ – A house party turned deadly in Casa Grande, resulting in the untimely death of 17-year-old Hailey Stephens. The fatal incident also ended in the injury of another girl of the same age.
The Casa Grande Police Department responded to a shooting incident near State Route 387 and Cottonwood Lane around 1 am on Sunday. When they arrived at the scene, authorities discovered two teenage girls with gunshot wounds at the scene.
The surviving teenager suffered a bullet wound on her arm and continues to recover in the hospital. Stephens, however, was critically injured from a gunshot wound to her head and succumbed to her injuries later that day at a Valley hospital. No other victims were reported, and no suspects have been identified yet.
Detailed investigations by the Casa Grande Police Department led them to the scene of a house party at a vacant residence on Silver Reef Road, where an altercation occurred among the unidentified number of attendees. The gunfire reported to the police appeared to result in the ensuing chaos, hitting the two unsuspecting teenage girls with stray bullets.
The detectives have conducted preliminary interviews with all available witnesses and are urging anyone with helpful information about the party or the incident to come forward. Detective Nicholas Elliott can be reached for tips about the incident. Information can also be reported through the Silent Witness Casa Grande AZ.