Sacramento County Sheriff's Office investigators are investigating a gun violence incident that took place on the evening of April 18 at Howe Community Park in the Arden-Arcade area as officers were breaking up a large unauthorized gathering of several hundred people.
Background
Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies initially responded to the park on Howe Avenue shortly before 6:30 in the evening after learning of people potentially armed with concealed firearms. Not long after, additional information came in about a potential altercation happening inside the park.
An overhead unit was sent to survey the area but found nothing to substantiate the fight report. However, deputies found that a massive group had packed into the park without authorization.
The Shooting Itself
Responding units began the process of clearing the park by surrounding the park and announcing over their public address systems ordering attendees to disperse at once. About 15 minutes were given for attendees to disperse.
While deputies worked to disperse the gathering that 20 to 25 rounds of ammunition were fired. The sudden gunfire sent hundreds fleeing. Responding personnel immediately began searching for victims.
The Shooting Victims
When the dust settled, four gunshot victims were confirmed as gunshot victims. The victims — comprising three men and one woman each reported to be in their twenties — were brought to area medical facilities. Emergency physicians stated that two had critical injury classifications, one sustained moderate wounds, and one person's injuries were considered minor. In a positive development, all four victims survived and were stable.
Sacramento fire crews arrived on scene and provided medical assistance those who had been shot on location.
What Investigators Found
Most of the gunfire appears to have unfolded on the Cottage Way corridor alongside the Home Depot store located at the 2200 Howe Avenue block. Detectives found further ballistic evidence in the form of shell casings scattered along Cottage Way. Round impacts were observed in the iron fence near the Home Depot. The physical evidence confirmed that a second shooter had been shooting in a southerly direction from the Cottage Way area aimed at the Home Depot store. That Home Depot location was website put under lockdown while law enforcement worked the area. Crime scene personnel remained on scene well into the night.
Suspect Vehicle Located
Intelligence received over scanner radio traffic showed that a Kia connected to the shooting had been stopped in the Solano County area. Four detainees were in the vehicle at the time of the stop. Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies were sent to retrieve the detainees to return them to Sacramento for questioning. Video that was reviewed made clear that the shooting involved two separate gunmen.