A shooting death in the Ecker’s Hollow neighborhood of East Columbia on Tuesday has rattled neighbors, who called the community a quiet and safe place where crime happens infrequently.

Howard County Police responded to a call of suspicious circumstances around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 6000 block of Helen Dorsey Way in Columbia, according to a statement from the department. A man was found in the driver’s seat of a parked car with at least one gunshot wound and was declared dead at the scene.

On Wednesday, police identified the victim as Lance Carrington, 17, of Columbia. Police believe “the incident was not random and was possibly drug-related,” and have no suspect. They are offering a $5,000 reward for more information about the shooting.

The neighborhood of large single-family homes returned to its quiet state Wednesday as one person walked a dog through the cold and a few cars drove by the scene. Neighbor Ming Nelson said he would never expect gunshots in the community, and brushed off a loud bang he heard a little before 8:30 p.m. until he saw flashing lights and a growing number of police officers. Nelson grew up in the neighborhood; his parents were original buyers of their home in 2001.

Through the trees near his home, Nelson said, he saw a dark sedan that was blasting music parked near the empty grassy area at the end of the block. Though encrusted in a frozen layer of snow, the open area has two small soccer goals, a trash can with bags for dog walkers and a gazebo, where another neighbor, Lalit Sharma, said young people sometimes come to hang out.

Across the street from the open area, Susan Wright came home Tuesday night to find police cars blocking off the streets to access her home. A police officer walked with her to her home, explaining that there was a crime scene nearby.

Wright said her husband, Rick, saw a car parked by the field and heard a noise around 8 p.m. that sounded similar to backfire from a car, but thought it could’ve been a gunshot.

When he went outside to get more information, he heard that there was a shooting and the possibility of a stolen car, Wright said.

“I mean, we always lock our doors and stuff, and I’m glad we have a garage for our cars, but I don’t see myself feeling unsafe,” Wright said. “Now, if this starts happening regularly, that’s a different story. But one incident out of almost six years or seven years, not going to worry about it.”

For Sharma, a resident of the neighborhood since its inception in 2001, the incident was “unsettling” and “disturbing.” There have been a few break-ins while he has lived there but nothing as serious as Tuesday night’s fatal shooting. Sharma wasn’t home when the incident occurred, but his daughter was home and believes she heard a gunshot.

Almost everybody in the neighborhood knows one another, Sharma said, leaving him wondering whether Tuesday’s incident involved individuals from outside the community. Nelson shared similar thoughts, saying he “can’t imagine” anyone from the neighborhood would be involved.

As the investigation remains ongoing, police are encouraging anyone with information to call 911.

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