25 People Shot In Little Rock, Arkansas Club, Here’s What We Know
America was rocked by another mass shooting on Saturday, July 1, when more than two dozen people were shot at a nightclub in Little Rock, Arkansas.
UPDATE: Little Rock Police Chief Kenton Buckner said in a press conference on Saturday afternoon that police were still investigating the shooting at Power Ultra Lounge, and that he believed the public was not in any danger. He confirmed that Power Ultra Lounge's liquor license had been suspended and that the club was being evicted.
Buckner said that the 28 injured appeared to all be African American, ranging between 16 and 35 years of age, and two remained in critical condition.
Buckner added that off-duty police officers who had been working as security at the venue had stopped at least one attendee from entering the club with a weapon, but that it was believed that others carrying weapons had been able to enter. Police are still uncertain as to how many shooters there were.
EARLIER: Police said that 25 people had been shot and three more had unrelated injuries in a dispute among clubgoers attending a performance at Power Ultra Lounge in downtown Little Rock, the Associated Press reported on Saturday. All are expected to survive. Police said that they believed that multiple people fired weapons, but the shooting is not believed to be terrorism-related.
A Facebook live video appears to show the moments just before the shooting.
In the video, captioned “2times” with a sunglasses emoji and posted around 4 a.m. on Saturday, clubgoers are seen singing along with performer Finese 2Tymes, before a short pause in the music. A few seconds later, shots ring out in several bursts. The video goes dark for a time, and finishes with the filmer apparently checking himself for wounds.
Darryl Rankin, who posted the video, told the AP that one of his friends was among the wounded, with a bullet in his spine.
Musician Finese 2Tymes shared his condolences in an all-caps Facebook post. “PRAYERS GO TO THE INNOCENT PEOPLE AND THERE FAMILY THAT CAME OUT TO SUPPORT ME, LAST NIGHT IN LITTLE ROCK ARK. THE VIOLENCE IS NOT FOR THE CLUB PEOPLE,” he wrote.
On Twitter, some were calling attention to the lack of comment from President Trump, particularly in light of his social media activity earlier the same day.
Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson issued a statement via Twitter, expressing his condolences to the victims and addressing crime in Little Rock.
Little Rock's crime problem appears to be intensifying. Every few days it seems a high profile shooting dominates the news, culminating with this morning's event. I have spoken with [Little Rock] Mayor [Mark] Stodola and I have offered both my heart felt concern over this senseless violent tragedy and state assets as needed to address the continued threat of violence in our community.
A police press conference about the shooting is scheduled for 3 p.m., and this story will be updated with any additional information.
More to come.
