Sacramento County Sheriff's Office investigators are working a gun violence incident that erupted late Saturday at the Howe Community Park area just as deputies were shutting down a large unauthorized gathering of a crowd of several hundred.
Prior to the Shooting
Deputies were first called to Howe Park just after 6:30 PM after obtaining information of individuals possibly carrying concealed weapons. After that, a follow-up call was made describing a reported physical confrontation occurring at the location.
An overhead unit was sent to survey the area but found nothing to substantiate the fight report. Nevertheless, authorities discovered that a massive group had packed into the park in an unauthorized manner.
The Moment Gunfire Erupted
Officers worked to disperse the crowd by surrounding the park and making announcements commanding the crowd to go home. Roughly 15 Howe Park shooting Sacramento minutes were given for individuals to vacate.
Just as the crowd began to move that upwards of 20 gunshots were discharged. The shots triggered a stampede. Responding personnel swiftly started searching for victims.
Four Victims Hospitalized
By the time the scene was secured, four individuals were discovered with shooting injuries. The shooting victims — a group of one female and three male victims all believed to be in their twenties — were airlifted or driven to area medical facilities. Doctors and nurses reported that two were treated for serious injuries, one person had injuries of a moderate nature, and one sustained minor gunshot wounds. In a positive development, no fatalities were reported and all four were stable.
Sacramento Metro Fire provided support and assisted with medical triage those who had been shot at the park.
Evidence at the Scene
The bulk of the shooting appears to have happened on the Cottage Way corridor near the local Home Depot at the 2200 block of Howe Ave. CSI personnel discovered more spent casings on the Cottage Way roadway. Round impacts were also found in the iron fence bordering the Home Depot. This ballistic evidence indicated that a second shooter had been firing southward from along Cottage Way toward the Home Depot store. The store itself was put under lockdown for a period of time. CSI investigators and detectives kept processing evidence through the early morning hours.
Suspect Vehicle Located
Reports confirmed through law enforcement radio communications revealed that a suspect Kia had been stopped in nearby Solano County. Four individuals were stopped and detained. Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies were heading to pick up the four detainees to pick up those detained for processing in Sacramento County. Surveillance footage showed that two individuals had fired weapons.