Sacramento authorities are examining a shooting that broke out Saturday night April 18 at the Howe Community Park area as officers were clearing a large unsanctioned party of an estimated several hundred individuals.
Background
Officers from the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office were first dispatched to the Arden-Arcade park at about half past six in the evening after learning of persons possibly in possession of concealed weapons. Shortly after, additional information came in regarding an alleged brawl happening at Howe Park.
Aerial units flew over the park but reported no active disturbance. Regardless, it became clear that a crowd of several hundred had packed into the park without any permit or approval.
The Moment Gunfire Erupted
Responding units began the process of clearing the park by forming a here perimeter and announcing over their public address systems directing the crowd to vacate the area. About 15 minutes were spent for the gathering to break up.
It was during this dispersal that 20 to 25 rounds of ammunition were discharged. The sudden gunfire sparked chaos as hundreds ran. Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies swiftly started locating gunshot victims.
Four Gunshot Victims
Altogether, four victims were located with gunshot injuries. The victims — made up of one woman and three men each apparently in their early to late twenties — were brought to hospitals in the Sacramento area. Hospital staff reported that two had critical injury classifications, one person had injuries of a moderate nature, and one suffered minor injuries. In a positive development, all four were in stable condition.
Metro Fire Sacramento assisted at the location and helped care for the four victims on location.
What Investigators Found
The bulk of the shooting was confirmed to have taken place along the Cottage Way corridor next to the Home Depot store located at the 2200 Howe Avenue block. CSI personnel located additional spent rounds on the Cottage Way roadway. Round impacts were noted in the wrought iron perimeter fencing alongside the nearby Home Depot. The physical evidence pointed to that one of the gunmen had been shooting in a southerly direction from Cottage Way in the direction of the Home Depot. That Home Depot location was temporarily locked down while the scene was active. Crime scene technicians and detectives worked tirelessly late into the evening.
Suspects Detained
Details gathered over police scanner frequencies confirmed that a vehicle identified as a Kia was intercepted in an area within Solano County. Four people were in the vehicle at the time of the stop. Law enforcement units were heading to pick up the four detainees to return them to Sacramento for formal questioning. Footage analyzed by investigators showed that two shooters had been involved.