5 min read
Major Takeaways
- Twelve people were injured near Bragg Memorial Stadium on Saturday night, and eleven of them were shot.
- Six of the injured are juveniles, and the youngest victim is just 11 years old.
- One of the people shot is a Florida A&M student. The twelfth person hurt is a grandmother who was injured while fleeing and was not shot.
- Three victims are seriously hurt, including one in critical condition, and eight are stable. No deaths have been reported.
- Police say an altercation between a few individuals came before the gunfire, and they call the shooting an isolated incident.
- No arrests have been announced, and Florida A&M says its campus remains safe.
A Night of Celebration Turns on Perry Street
Homecoming at Florida A&M is more than a football game. It is a family reunion on the highest of seven hills, and Rattlers plan their whole year around it.
Alumni fly in from across the country. Families fill the parade route in the morning and pack the tailgates all afternoon in orange and green.
The football team gave them a fight on Saturday. Arkansas Pine Bluff held on to win 31 to 28, handing Florida A&M its first homecoming loss since 2017.
The game ended shortly before 7 p.m. Tailgating was set to run until 10 p.m., and the streets around the stadium stayed full of people celebrating.
Then, just before 8 p.m., gunfire broke out near the corner of Perry Street and Manatee Street, right beside Bragg Memorial Stadium.
Twelve Injured, Six of Them Children
Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell laid out the toll late Saturday night at a press conference on the Florida A&M campus.
Twelve people were injured in all. Eleven of them were shot. The twelfth person hurt is the grandmother of one of the victims, and she was injured while fleeing the scene.
Six of the injured are adults, and six are juveniles. The youngest victim is just 11 years old.
Three victims are seriously injured, including one person in critical condition. Eight victims are in stable condition.
No deaths have been reported, and on a night this dark, that is the one mercy.
“I stand before you tonight devastated,” Chief Revell said.
Police have not released the name of any victim. Revell did confirm that one of the people shot is a Florida A&M student.
Revell said officers picked up victims and carried them in their arms toward help because vehicles could not get through the mass of people.
What Police Believe Happened
Revell said early information points to an altercation between individuals in the moments before the shooting started.
“We do not know exactly what happened,” the chief said. “What we do believe is that this was an isolated incident between two or three individuals and nothing more than that.”
In other words, a dispute involving a handful of people turned into gunfire in the middle of a crowd full of families and children.
As of the press conference, police had announced no arrests. No description of any suspect has been released, and the investigation is still active.
Officers had the scene secure by 9:45 p.m., and Perry Street stayed closed while investigators collected evidence through the night.
The University Responds
Florida A&M sent its first safety alert at 8:40 p.m., telling anyone near the stadium to avoid the area or shelter in place.
Late Saturday night, the university said it is aware of the incident that occurred near campus on Perry Street and that Tallahassee police are on the scene investigating.
“Our hearts go out to the victims and all those affected by this tragic incident,” the university said.
The university said the campus remains safe. It urged everyone to avoid the area so officers can work, and it promised more updates as information is confirmed.
Florida State University also sent a precautionary alert at 10 p.m., advising its students to remain indoors for the evening.
Florida State said there was no indication that members of its community were involved.
What Comes Next
Police are asking anyone with information to call the Tallahassee Police Department at 850 891 4200 or Crime Solvers at 850 574 TIPS.
Somebody in that crowd saw who fired. Somebody knows a name, and the families waiting on word about their children deserve that call.
Homecoming is supposed to send everybody home with stories about the parade, the game, and the people they had not seen in years.
This year, too many families spent the night waiting for word on someone they love.
Urban City Podcast will update this story as police release confirmed information. Follow our continuing coverage in the News section and our HBCU football coverage in Sports.
