MINNEAPOLIS — Seven people are in the hospital, some of them critically injured, after a shooting in Minneapolis Monday night. Officials initially said there were eight victims, however, the Minneapolis Park Police provided an update on Tuesday saying they believe one of the victims was injured in a separate incident.
According to information from the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board, Minneapolis Park Police and Minneapolis Police officers responded to Boom Island Park around 11:30 p.m. on July 4 for reports of a shooting.
A group had gathered in the park to celebrate the Fourth of July even though the city canceled its fireworks show due to staffing issues and ongoing construction along the Mississippi River.
After the shots were fired, most people left the area before police arrived. A spokesperson for the park board said Tuesday that most of the shooting victims arrived at local hospitals on their own, where staff notified police officers.
On Tuesday, Park Police said six of the seven victims are teens, including three juveniles. Two 18-year-old men and one 18-year-old woman are in serious condition. A 22-year-old man and a 17-year-old girl were admitted for treatment, and two 17-year-old boys were treated and released. As of 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, no arrests had been made.
"This is our city. We live here. We work here. We have families here and our futures are here," said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey in a press conference Tuesday. "While we have seen some really tragic events happening in so many other cities throughout our country over the last weekend, and to be frank, over the last several months ... We live here. We care about Minneapolis. We believe in this city, and it's up to us to make sure that we're doing everything we possibly can to curb some of this recklessness and the violence that we've seen."
During the press conference, Frey said the Minneapolis Park Board is the lead agency investigating, but that the city and the Minneapolis Police Department are assisting.
Minneapolis Police Interim Chief Amelia Huffman was also present at the press conference, and while she couldn't provide any additional information about the investigation, she added that they're investigating a report of a shooting at Gold Medal Park. It's unclear if it's related to the shooting at Boom Island.
No arrests have been made in connection to the shooting. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 612-230-6550, referencing case number 22-150903.
Adding to the chaos, social media lit up overnight with videos showing cars driving around and shooting fireworks both into the sky and at people on the street in the nearby Mill District neighborhood of Minneapolis.
"This is conduct that should not be acceptable in any city," said Mayor Frey. "The kind of violence, the recklessness and, in some cases, idiotic behavior that we saw shouldn't be tolerated, and let me be clear, won't be tolerated."
Video shared with KARE 11 showed people shooting fireworks from cars on 2nd Street around 11:30 p.m. as they sped around the downtown neighborhood.
Other videos showed individuals running through the streets carrying the lit fireworks and aiming them at other people.
In Tuesday's press conference, Huffman said officers received more than 1,300 calls from 9 p.m. Monday to 4 a.m. Tuesday. Deputy Chief of Patrol Erick Fors said the department is still processing reports and couldn't provide the total number of arrests. He added that one arrest was made in connection to an assault on a police officer.
This is a developing story. KARE 11 will provide more details as new information becomes available.
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