Holly MatkinWashington, DC – A 15-year-old boy was murdered and a DC police officer and two other people were wounded after a gunman opened fire near an unpermitted Juneteenth music festival on Sunday night, according to police.
Several hundred people gathered for the free musical event, which was known as “Moechella,” WTOP reported.
Prior to the shooting, two earlier incidents caused panic in the crowd, resulting in trampling, DC Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Chief Robert Contee said during a press conference later that night, according to CNN.
MPD officers responded to the unpermitted concert to provide crowd control and to keep the street clear, WTOP reported.
They ultimately shut the concert down after an “incident or fight” erupted at approximately 6 p.m., Chief Contee said.
He noted that people began to “scatter at that point, CNN reported.
Large crowds react to situation at 14th & U streets in Washington, DC at 6:47pm. This was an incident prior to the evening shooting at the same location. @DCPoliceDept @nbcwashington @fox5dc pic.twitter.com/ZWhbo4dAHN
— Christian Mullins (@CMullins893) June 20, 2022
Multiple people suffered ankle and leg injuries as they tried to leave the area, and first responders recovered one illegal firearm while assisting an injured partygoer, he said.
A short while later, gunfire broke out nearby in the area of U Street Northwest and 14th Street Northwest, KABC reported.
Details regarding the shooting are unclear, but police confirmed that a 15-year-old boy was killed, according to CNN.
A MPD police officer and two other individuals were wounded by gunfire.
Witness Daniel Dyson said the wounded officer continued to try to save others, despite his own injuries, FOX News reported.
“He did not want to stay down. He proceeded on,” Dyson said. “He was shot in the leg. And he kept moving. He went to the fire. He did not run away.”
DC police confirm multiple shooting at 14th and U streets NW. MPD officer among the wounded. #breaking pic.twitter.com/c9z8BlE7TZ
— Darcy Spencer (@darcyspencer) June 20, 2022
The officer and the other two wounded adult victims were all hospitalized in stable condition on Sunday night, according to CNN.
Chief Contee said no officers fired their duty weapons during the attack, WTOP reported.
More than 100 law enforcement officers responded to the area, and multiple firearms were recovered, according to FOX News.
Chief Contee said that one of the wounded adult victims was also carrying a gun, CNN reported.
The weapon used to shoot the police officer has not been recovered, the chief noted.
Police did not identify the shooter or any of the victims.
#BREAKING: DC Juneteenth Celebration interrupted by a mass shooting. Multiple people, including an MPD officer shot. Total chaos. pic.twitter.com/eIIV0NdzS2
— Hunter Cullen 🇺🇦🇺🇸🇬🇧🇨🇦🇦🇺🇳🇿 (@HunterJCullen) June 20, 2022
Chief Contee the investigation will include speaking with the organizers of the unpermitted event and considering what legal action may be taken against them.
“Unfortunately, things like this can happen when you have the wrong mix of people, or people who introduce firearms into a situation,” he said, according to CNN. “When you have large gatherings in a dense area, all it takes is one person introducing a gun to the situation that makes it deadly. In this case, unfortunately, a 15-year-old lost his life.”
“We will certainly want to make sure that people are held accountable when they hold unpermitted events in our city,” Chief Contee added.
JUNETEENTH CELEBRATORY SHOOTING, DCpic.twitter.com/ARc512rhgB
— The_Real_Fly (@The_Real_Fly) June 20, 2022
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser echoed the police chief’s calls for accountability.
“We have a child who was killed today at an event that did not have any proper planning for the number of people who were here and with guns involved,” Bowser said during the press conference, according to CNN. “The chief and I will continue to make sure we have the resources we need on these corridors and all of our corridors but we need some accountability here.”
This is a developing story and we will keep you updated. For all of our updates, follow us on Facebook and go to your news feed preferences under your settings, then select that you want to see more of The Police Tribune’s posts in your news feed. Otherwise, Facebook may not show you updates.
