Current:Home > My3 separate shootings mar St. Patrick's Day festivities in Jacksonville Beach, Fla. -Momentum Wealth Path
3 separate shootings mar St. Patrick's Day festivities in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
View
Date:2025-04-18 19:48:02
Police are searching for multiple suspects in three different shootings that left one person dead and at least three injured as thousands crowded in downtown Jacksonville Beach, Florida, Sunday night for St. Patrick's Day festivities.
The shootings occurred near the city's beachfront after police broke up a group of up to 400 people in their late teens who gathered under the pier Sunday afternoon.
"This group engaged in boxing matches, fights and other incidents. The Jacksonville Beach Police Department had to take action," Jacksonville Beach Police Chief Gene Paul Smith said at a new conference on Monday morning. "When the crowd dispersed, that's when the shooting happened."
Police responded to the first shooting at a Best Western hotel at around 7:50 p.m., Smith said. The shooting left three people injured – two were transported to the hospital afterwards, and another self-reported an injury. Authorities believe two of the victims fired at each other, while the third was an innocent bystander, Smith said.
Less than half an hour later, reports came in of a second shooting in a parking lot outside the Ritz, a cocktail bar. No one was injured or killed, and the shooter fled the scene in a black ski mask, Smith said. Officers found one firearm.
Police responded to the third shooting, which left one victim dead, at Sneakers Sports Grille at 8:31 p.m. Officers believe three suspects pulled out firearms, Smith said. The identity of the 21-year-old victim has not been released.
The shootings are believed to be unrelated, Smith said. The investigation remains ongoing, and the identities of the suspects have not been released.
"Quite frankly, I'm pissed off," Smith said. "I want you to come to Jacksonville Beach, I want you to live here, I want you to visit, but if you break the law, we're going to put you in jail."
Smith said officials do not know if any of the shootings were gang-related. The victim who self-reported their injury in the first shooting is a known gang member, he said.
Jacksonville police have asked people to contact authorities if they have information related to the incidents.
veryGood! (47)
Related
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Some states are restricting abortion. Others are spending millions to fund it
- Fish make music! It could be the key to healing degraded coral reefs
- Vanderpump Rules' Tom Sandoval Doesn’t Want to Hear the Criticism—About His White Nail Polish
- Trump wants to turn the clock on daylight saving time
- Trump Takes Aim at Obama-Era Rules on Methane Leaks and Gas Flaring
- Senate 2020: In Montana, Big Sky Country, Climate Change is Playing a Role in a Crucial Toss-Up Race
- Biden hosts India's Modi for state visit, navigating critical relationship amid human rights concerns
- New Mexico governor seeks funding to recycle fracking water, expand preschool, treat mental health
- Don’t Gut Coal Ash Rules, Communities Beg EPA at Hearing
Ranking
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Hepatitis C can be cured. So why aren't more people getting treatment?
- How to protect yourself from poor air quality
- By Getting Microgrids to ‘Talk,’ Energy Prize Winners Tackle the Future of Power
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- Millionaire says OceanGate CEO offered him discount tickets on sub to Titanic, claimed it was safer than scuba diving
- Céline Dion Cancels World Tour Amid Health Battle
- One year after Roe v. Wade's reversal, warnings about abortion become reality
Recommendation
Gen. Mark Milley's security detail and security clearance revoked, Pentagon says
Blue Ivy Runs the World While Joining Mom Beyoncé on Stage During Renaissance Tour
Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello Make Our Wildest Dreams Come True at Taylor Swift's Eras Tour
Opioid settlement payouts are now public — and we know how much local governments got
Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
Blue Ivy Runs the World While Joining Mom Beyoncé on Stage During Renaissance Tour
Where Mama June Shannon Stands With Her Daughters After Family Tension
Senate 2020: In South Carolina, Graham Styles Himself as a Climate Champion, but Has Little to Show