NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — One person is dead and at least nine others were injured after a shooting near Tennessee State University on Saturday, which was celebrating its homecoming. Two suspects remain at large as of Sunday morning.
According to the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD), there was an exchange of gunfire between two groups at approximately 5:10 p.m. near the intersection of Jefferson Street and 27th Avenue North.
Crowds had gathered in the area for TSU's homecoming parade and had largely dispersed, with most people heading to the 5 p.m. game at Nissan Stadium, authorities explained.
Crews with the Nashville Fire Department, which were already staged in the area for the parade, initially believed the gunshots to be fireworks, according to the agency's Kendra Loney. They were quick to jump into action though, with some having to use their own belts as as tourniquets because they didn't have their medical bags with them, Loney explained.
Police confirmed 10 people were hospitalized after the shooting. Five were taken to area hospitals by NFD while five others were taken by private vehicle, MNPD Public Information Officer Brooke Reese said during a media briefing. One person, a 24-year-old man, was pronounced dead.
A member of the fire department was also transported for an unrelated medical emergency; it's unclear if they were included in the number given by police.
Saturday night, Nashville police released more details about the victims, three of whom are teenagers: a 55-year-old woman, who was in critical condition and undergoing surgery; a 44-year-old woman; a 31-year-old man; a 32-year-old man; a 23-year-old man; two 14-year-old girls; and a 12-year-old girl. Earlier in the evening, police said the teenagers were in non-critical condition.
Police did not provide details on the tenth victim, MNPD Public Information Officer Don Aaron said authorities were confident at least one of the hospitalized victims was a shooter.
According to Aaron, one handgun was found in the street at the scene, and authorities believe handguns were used in the shooting. He noted that investigators were speaking with the hospitalized victims, some of which he said were known to police due to prior interactions.
"This is a very difficult scenario for our city in that just a handful of people, a very small number of people besmirched the celebration of activities for North Nashville and Tennessee State University taking place today," Aaron said.
When asked if the shooting was gang-related, Aaron said there was no indication of any gang relation and that it was just "two groups of people who were beefing and they opened fire on each other with a crowd around."
"Of course, everybody knows homecoming celebration for Tennessee State University is a huge event," MNPD Cmdr. Anthony McClain said. "I graduated from Tennessee State University, so my family and I [were] enjoying this occasion today. It's unfortunate that a few folks pretty much ruined it for everybody, okay? So we have to come to the point where we stop this violence. Fortunately for us, we had quite a few officers working the area. I think they were able to mitigate the carnage, so to speak. We appreciate that effort. We appreciate the efforts of the fire department, as well."
According to McClain, the shooting was not a direct reflection on TSU itself and is believed to be something that was "kind of a side bar to the celebration." He said there have been some shootings up and down the Jefferson Street corridor, but it's been pretty uneventful for the past couple of years.
Late Saturday night, TSU shared descriptions of two "suspects still at large" provided by authorities: a Black mal wearing a green top and pants, and a Black male wearing a black and white top with jeans who was possibly in a Ford Fusion.
Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell also shared a statement about the shooting, saying, "Earlier today, hundreds of us marched down historic Jefferson Street for homecoming. What was a joyous atmosphere is tonight very different because of a senseless act of violence carried out by people who didn’t care who else might be caught in the crossfire."
No additional details have been released about Saturday evening's deadly shooting.
