7 shot, 2 fatally, after highschool commencement in Richmond

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Seven individuals have been shot, two fatally, when gunfire rang out Tuesday exterior a downtown theater in Richmond, Virginia, the place a highschool commencement ceremony had simply ended, inflicting a whole lot of attendees to flee in panic, weep and clutch their youngsters, authorities and witnesses stated.

A 19-year-old suspect tried to flee on foot however was arrested and will likely be charged with two counts of second-degree homicide, Interim Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards stated throughout a nighttime information convention at which he confirmed the 2 fatalities.

Five others have been wounded by the gunfire exterior the state capital’s city-owned Altria Theater, which is throughout the road from a big, grassy park and in the course of the Virginia Commonwealth University campus. At least 12 others have been injured or handled for nervousness because of the mayhem, in keeping with police.

“As they heard the gunfire, it was obviously chaos,” Edwards stated. “We had hundreds of people in Monroe Park, so people scattered. It was very chaotic at the scene.”

Edwards stated one of many individuals who was killed was an 18-year-old male scholar who had simply graduated, whereas the opposite was a 36-year-old man who was there for the commencement. Their names weren’t launched, however police consider the suspect, who was not instantly recognized, knew at the very least one of many victims.

“This should have been a safe space. People should have felt safe at a graduation,” Edwards stated.

“It’s just incredibly tragic that someone decided to bring a gun to this incident and rain terror on our community.”

Six individuals have been delivered to VCU Medical Center and their circumstances ranged from critical to crucial late Tuesday, VCU Health System spokesperson Mary Kate Brogan stated.

Multiple handguns have been recovered. Police initially stated two suspects have been detained, however Edwards stated later that they decided one in all them was not concerned.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney vowed to make sure anybody accountable faces justice.

“This should not be happening anywhere,” Stoney stated.

Officers contained in the theater, the place the commencement ceremony for Huguenot High School had been happening, heard gunfire round 5:15 p.m. and radioed to police stationed exterior, who discovered a number of victims, Edwards stated.

School board member Jonathan Young instructed Richmond TV station WWBT that graduates and different attendees have been leaving the constructing once they heard about 20 gunshots in fast succession.

“That prompted, as you would expect, hundreds of persons in an effort to flee the gunfire to return to the building,” Young stated.

“It materialized in a stampede,” he stated.

Two individuals have been handled for falls; one juvenile was struck by a automobile and sustained accidents that weren’t life-threatening; and 9 individuals have been handled on the scene for minor accidents or nervousness, in keeping with police spokeswoman Tracy Walker.

Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras stated the brand new graduates have been exterior taking photographs with households and buddies when the capturing broke out.

“I don’t have any more words on this,” Kamras stated. “I’m just tired of seeing people get shot, our kids get shot. And I beg of the entire community to stop, to just stop.”

As he heard the gunshots after which sirens, neighbor John Willard, 69, stepped onto the balcony of his 18th-floor condo. Below, he noticed college students fleeing of their commencement outfits and fogeys hugging youngsters.

“There was one poor woman in front of the apartment block next to ours who was wailing and crying,” Willard stated, including that the scene left him deeply saddened.

Edythe Payne was serving to her daughter promote flowers exterior the theater to college students as they left the ceremony. She instructed the Richmond Times-Dispatch that the capturing triggered a panic on close by Main Street, which was full of individuals on the time.

“I felt bad because some elderly people were at the graduation and they got knocked down to the ground,” Payne stated.

The faculty district stated a special commencement scheduled for later Tuesday had been canceled “out of an abundance of caution” and colleges can be closed Wednesday.

The mass capturing, the newest in a nation more and more accustomed to them, prompted requires reform.

“The gun violence epidemic is a public health crisis that we must address,” U.S. Rep. Jennifer McClellan, a Democrat whose district consists of Richmond, stated in an announcement. “We cannot continue to live in fear. We must address the root causes of gun violence and pass common sense gun safety policies that protect our communities.”

Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, an ardent gun-rights advocate, stated in remarks to information retailers close to the scene that the issue lies not with weapons however with criminals.

“We have to figure out what’s going on in our communities,” she stated.