‘Out of control’: Fatal shooting after Euclid football game leaves residents concerned
EUCLID, Ohio (WJW) — Euclid police are investigating a mass shooting that left one teenager dead and sent four others to the hospital.
Investigators say it was about an hour after a football game at Euclid High School ended on Friday night, that gunfire erupted a block away from the campus on Nicholas Avenue near the Euclid Fire Station on East 222nd Street.
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Officers were in the area conducting crowd control after the game, and quickly discovered that five teenagers, all between 16 and 17 years old, had been shot.
Investigators say one of the victims, who was 17, died as a result of his injuries. The other four victims were taken to local hospitals.
The violence happened on a night that Euclid residents say should have been filled with the joy of high school football.
Longtime resident Adolphus Benedict told Fox 8, “the last five years, it’s just escalating and it’s so far out of control that you know, you kind of wonder where the parents are, to be able to let these kids do some of the things they do, it’s ‘no way.'”
Another resident, Kelly Prince, added, “it’s really unfortunate and it’s almost kind of embarrassing that this is part of my community and people have to be scared to come here, especially for parents that want to come and see their kids and support something that they’re passionate about and they have this fear now.”
Euclid police have not revealed a motive for the shooting or publicly identified any suspects, but the department did issue a statement on Saturday, that reads in part, “this was not a random act of violence and there is no ongoing threat to the public at large.”
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The thoughts of many parents in Euclid are with the families of the young victims.
Angela Acton, who lives near the scene of the shooting, told us, “my heart goes out to them, I’ve never had to experience losing a child, it’s something that I would never want to even have to fathom. All I can say is, I pray for them and hope that God gives them the strength to get through this difficult time.”
Longtime residents note that Friday’s incident is just the latest in a string of violent crimes or threats of violence, that led last season to some opponents opting out of games at Euclid High or games being moved to other sites.
“This year, it’s not really sounding like a bad idea, although these things do occur at other high schools as well. The only thing I can suggest is maybe Euclid Police kind of doubling up a little bit with the cops over there when they know that they have home games,” said Acton.
But other residents, who are alarmed by the level of violence that was unleashed on Friday, say the school district should consider moving the rest of the Euclid home games to another site.
“Nobody is intimidated by the police presence, kids are walking around with guns, so the current plan that we have going on is obviously not working and I think something drastic needs to change,” said Prince.
The Euclid City Schools issued a statement that reads in part: “late last night, a tragic shooting occurred in our community, impacting five students, including those from Euclid City Schools and other local schools. With deep regret, we share that one teen has passed away as a result of this incident. While the student was not enrolled in Euclid City Schools, we mourn the loss of a young life and extend our deepest condolences to the family and community.”
In response to the shootings, the district announced on Saturday that counseling will be made available to students and staff at each school in the district, beginning Tuesday.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Euclid Police Detective Bureau at 216-289-8505
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